Ministry Update

First of all, thank you for your prayers over the past few months.  Many of you knew that we were in a time of transition in our ministry.  After pastoring in Darkhan for the past 5 years God began leading us to hand the churches over to the leaders He had brought up and prepared for the job.  This all really came about this past spring and although we didn’t know what the next step would be for us, we prayerfully let go of the reigns of leadership first in our Ulaan Baatar Church then in the Darkhan Church.  

THE NEWS

Almost simultaneously with that decision, we were contacted by a friend who was soon to be transitioning out of his position as Ministry Director for AMONG Mongolia.  He is American and he told us that the board was looking to hire a Mongolian for his job.  He thought that Hetee should apply for the position. 

We had worked with Eagle TV and AMONG over the past 4 years or so, doing translations and TV Bible teaching programs for them so we were familiar with their ministry.  Hetee applied and met with 2 board members who happened to be in the country.  After that initial meeting and a skype conference call with 3 other board members in the US, they invited him to come to Sioux Falls, South Dakota for a time to get to know each other.  After a series of meetings, they offered Hetee the job and he accepted!

Hetee’s job will consist of leading a staff team of about 45 in translating and producing Christian television shows and Bible teachings and classes for television, specifically for Eagle TV, which is viewed in all parts of the country.  We are excited about this next step in Ministry as it takes us to a place of impacting the whole nation of Mongolia for the Kingdom of God.  

THE PLAN

Moving the family to Ulaan Baatar was not an easy decision.  UB is notorious for its heavy traffic and air pollution, especially during the winter months.   Over the next 8 weeks Hetee will be commuting to and from Ulaan Baatar for work as part of a phasing in approach to the new job.  Around mid November, we plan to go to the USA, as a family, for a time of rest and then fundraising.  Most of our time will be spent in Arizona and South Dakota.  We would love to see all of our supporters and family in Louisiana and we are praying to make it all the way there.  Our family’s move to UB will probably take place in early February of 2013. 

If you would like to send a one-time gift or make a commitment to support us financially in this new phase in ministry, please contact us at ihetee@yahoo.com or   melaniekocke@gmail.com  and we’ll let you know what to do. 

                Blessings,

Hetee and Melanie

Yard $ale!

Once or twice a year we have a church-wide yard sale where we sell donated items really, really cheap and use the money to help the poor or a local missionary family. Besides raising money for these special Helps Ministry projects, it's also a great chance for the less fortunate in our congregation (and in many cases, believers from other churches as well) to buy things like clothes, school supplies and toys for at very affordable prices.  I'm always a bit nervous doing something like this since the idea of selling used items at a yard sale is a pretty Western idea.  But, although the idea may be new to some people we've found that the Mongolian believers really like yard sales, especially the women.  I've said it before and I'll say it again -- women are the same the world over when it comes to saving a buck, and in the case of the Body of Christ, when it comes to helping someone in need.    

So today was yard sale day and we were blessed with a great outcome! 

Our fabulous Helps Ministry team!

Today they turned this...

This...

This...

And this...

Into this, a big pile of cash (ok, so it wasn't that big) with which to bless our  Erdenet church  leaders.  They are a young couple, with 3 small boys and can really use the help.  It's such a blessing to be a part of Christ's body!