Monday, January 31, 2011


Dear Friends,                                                                                      

As we have been visiting churches here in the States, our primary focus has been mainly the same as Paul - “And when they (Paul and Barnabas) were come, and gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.’’ (Acts 14:27) Although this furlough year has been nothing like some people think - a year of vacation, it has been a wonderful time to tell about the great things God has done. We praise Him for all whom we have meet.

We would like to give you the opportunity to see our ministry video.  You can see and hear from a number of the people among whom we have worked. These faithful men and women have a desire to see the gospel spread to other regions through their testimonies and ministries.  Pastor Jason Mcgraff, at Faith Baptist Church in Palm Bay, FL, uploaded our ministry video on their church’s web page. Our website manager, Heidi Brant, put that link on our web site for all to view it.  Please take a few minutes and watch this Ivory Coast ministry report on our web site link: http://www.steveandgayleking.com/Videos.html. When you hear the French speakers, the subtitles are a summary of the French. We trust this will be a blessing to you.

Please pray for Gayle. This past Thursday, she turned her left foot on the bottom step of the front porch. At first we thought it was a sprain, but the day after we took her to have x-rays and they found one fracture in her ankle and two in her foot, one on either side.  She is now in a boot cast and using crutches. Although she has enjoyed me bringing her breakfast in bed, she is anxious for her foot to heal.

Pray for the political situation in the Ivory Coast.  It is very complicated. Both the incumbent, Laurent Gbagbo and the challenger, Alassane Ouattara have been declared the winners by different groups. It is calm in San Pedro where we work and in many parts of the country. We are glad for the calm but know how quickly things can change. There have been deadly clashes in sections of Abidjan and in Doukoue (a city in the western part of the country). Some sense there is great danger; the UN commission on refugees state that 29,000 Ivorians have already left the country to the west for safety in Liberia and Guinea.

Pray for the citizens of the country.  I recently read an African parable on an African news website. "When the elephants fight, the grass gets hurt!" In other words, the powerful forces fight without so much damage to themselves, but the common person really suffers.  Pray for the ministries: Pastors, church members, Bible Institute faculty, students, and various American and French missionaries who are continuing on in their ministries.

Pray for wisdom as we consider our return. We have meetings until the last Sunday in March, and have been planning to return to the field in April. We want to ship a container with items that will be helpful for the work (books in French, Bibles, tracts, equipment and sound system for the Benjy Youth Center, gifts we have been given to distribute to the people) as well as some personal items.  We did get our four immunization shots, and that was not at all fun! But with this uncertainty, we have not yet bought the container nor our tickets for the return. We are seeking the counsel of our home church and our mission board.  

We appreciate all of you who have prayed for us, and those who have given towards our ministry.  We are grateful that we have so many who care about world missions.

Pressing towards our goal,

Steve and Gayle
Baptist Mid-Missions / Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) West Africa

P.S. A number of people have asked us to let them know of any thing we could use to take back to Africa. If you have any of the following things, you can contact us by phone:   Steve cell: 443-386-7480; or by e-mail: king@steveandgayleking.com

Things can be mailed to us at : 107 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn MD 21225 before March 1st.

• used desk top and lap top computers (Windows XP and newer)
• graduation robes and caps (black or white)
• communion sets
• microphones & speakers for church use
• portable CD players (for pastors to hear Christian messages in French and songs)
• used summer clothes & shoes (in good shape) for distribution
• wedding dresses
• new baby clothes, diapers, etc. to give out to newborns
• used video projector for other church ministries