Dear Friends and Supporters:

Greetings to you in the matchless name of Jesus!

We trust you had a good Thanksgiving holiday with your families this year.

On Thanksgiving evening here in Kenya, Jim and I had all of our single staff (20 of them) over for a turkey dinner. It was a lot of fun. I know they really appreciated it, as all of them are away from their families, too. We had turkey, with all the trimmings. The best part of it, however, was not the food. It was just to be together in order to thank our Heavenly Father for bringing each of these great people to the Rift Valley Academy (RVA) to help minister to the children of missionaries was a great privilege. I hope it encouraged them. I know it encouraged Jim and me just to have them in our home.

Another wonderful blessing we have this year is the privilege of being dorm parents to 18 sophomore girls. I want to give you a little introduction of each one:

Margaret Byamungu. Her parents are missionaries in Tanzania, working with the Tanzanian Christian Methodist Church. Margaret’s home is Korea where her mom hails from the Presbyterian Church of Korea.

Sheila DeJong. Her parents are missionaries with Africa Inland Mission from the States and teaching at Scott Bible College in Machakos, Kenya

Chelsie Doggett. Her parents come from the United States. Her father is a missionary pilot with Africa Inland Mission.

Diana Engebretson. Her parents are from the United States, now serving with the Evangelical Church in Zambia under SIM International.

Robyn Hartley. Her parents are from South Africa, serving in the country of Namibia under the Africa Inland Mission.

Damaris Hunziker. Her parents are from Switzerland, serving in Tanzania under the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL)

Lisa Johnson. Her parents are from the United States, serving in Tanzania under Christian Mission in Many Lands (CMML).

Angela Karige. Her parents are Kenyan. Angela became a Christian and was baptized here at RVA.

Susan Kioko. Her parents are Kenyan. Her mother was killed in a car wreck three and a half years ago. She and her two older sisters came to RVA soon after their mother was killed. Her father is a businessman in Nairobi.

Hannah Klassen. Her parents are from Canada, serving in Uganda with the Mennonite Central Committee.

Lauren McCall. Her parents are from the United States, serving in Tanzania with the Southern Baptist Mission Board (IMB).

Gaby Meyer. Her parents are from South Africa and serve in Malawi under the Pentecostal Holiness Church.

Christa Owen. Her parents are from the United States, serving in Lesotho with the Common Global Ministries of Lesotho Evangelical Church.

Elizabeth Polglase. Her parents are from the United States, serving in Malawi with the Southern Baptist Mission Board (IMB).

Mary Price. Her parents are from the U.S., serving in Tanzania with the Christian Missionary Fellowship.

Jeanea Shipley. Her parents are from the U.S., serving in Ethiopia with the Assemblies of God

Tiffany Stevenson. Her parents are from Canada serving in Uganda with the Church of God.

Simone Zander. Her parents are from Germany serving in Uganda with the Diguna Mission.

Please pray for each of these girls as God has given them to us to minister His love and care. They have just left for term break. They were all excited as they will all be able to be with their families, in their respective African country, until January 2, 2002, when they will return to RVA to continue this school year. Jim and I will continue to be their dorm parents next term. We are really enjoying it. However, I know with everything else Jim does here at RVA it is an added challenge—one he enjoys but does wear on him at times.

The main reason we are in the dorm is that we have a vision to put dorm moms and dads in our high school girls’ dorms. Until this term, when Jim and I decided to go into the dorm, the high school girls have had single dorm moms—no dorm dads. All of our high school boys’ dorms have had both a dorm mom and dad for years. We felt it was about time our girls had more of a family atmosphere also. We do appreciate your prayers as we continue on here at RVA.

We also request prayer for an African mzee (old man) who has no family. Even though he is Kikuyu, he was a scout for the British when the Mau Mau (Kikuyu warriors) began killing the white man. He was poisoned during that time. His pregnant wife was killed by other Kikuyu. After that his mind was not totally "normal." To this day he still talks about the Mau Mau and being a Scout for the Queen. He is now 72 years old and needs help caring for himself as he is weak from not eating. He now lives in a room here at RVA where we can make sure he is eating. Thankfully, he is now eating and growing stronger, but we would like for you to pray that he will know the love, joy, and peace that only comes from a vital relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, pray that his health will be restored. We will try to send you a picture of him (David Mugo) in our next e-mail prayer letter. Thank you for praying for him. We know God answers prayers.

Another prayer request: Jim has been asked by the school board to extend his time as superintendent for another four years. (He was appointed superintendent for a four-year term in 1998.) However, Jim is still praying about what God’s will is for us. He is to tell them for sure in February 2002. He has already promised them a one year extension, but they want more.

Jim has just returned from a four-day conference in Tanzania where he represented RVA. As the Branch Executive Officer (Superintendent) of Rift Valley Academy, he serves on many boards and has many additional responsibilities besides the 450 students, 100 staff and 100 Kenyan workers at RVA. He is presently the Chairperson of the Trustee Committee for all the Africa Inland Mission property in Kenya. He is an elder in the local African Inland Church. He is on the Board of Moffat Bible College. He is on the Station Management Committee which runs the mission station. He is also on the board of International Services which services the missionaries here in Kenya. I hope all of the above information helps you know how to pray for Jim.

Today we are welcoming Africa Inland Mission missionaries from all over Kenya for a five-day conference here at RVA. We have nine single lady missionaries staying in our dorm. Jim and I are both leading a prayer group—one in our dorm lounge and one in our home.

Please praise the Lord with us that it has been raining the last couple of weeks so things are looking green again.

We also praise Him because I am having the wonderful and exciting privilege of visiting our children and grandchildren for three weeks in December. Our oldest son Jonathan and his wife had a baby girl in July and it was my heart’s desire to be able to hold her before she gets too much bigger. God has made a way for me to stay one week in Springfield, Virginia, with our daughter Jennifer and her husband and three boys; one week with Jonathan Tabby and their new little girl, Taylor, and one week in Indiana with Bethany, Jason, Zachary, and Tiffany. Pray for Jim as he will stay in Kenya to "hold the fort" here.

It is indeed a privilege for us to serve the Lord here in Kenya.

We are so very thankful for your financial support but even more for your prayer support. "Without Him, we can do nothing!"

Have a Blessed Christmas! We love you and thank God for you.

Because He came, lived, and died for us and is coming again,

Jim and Kathy Long

The 2002 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 37