Hearts for Harvest

A little Rest and Relaxation

2012-01-28T23:14:00.000+02:00

Just a little for now. Last week, we spent most of the week (plus two travel days) in Blantyre, Malawi, to get some work done on our car. It takes about 8 hours to get to/from Blantyre to Lichinga. Much of the road on the Mozambican side is filled with mud, sand, and ditches, along with chickens, goats, and lambs that play, and even sit, in the middle of the road.

Our 4 kids posing in our home in Lichinga

We called some people we know in Blantyre ahead of time to find a place to stay, but we still didn’t know where we’d stay until we got there. But God is good, and had prepared things for us. A place that hadn’t previously been available was suddenly available. For the first time, we stayed at an SIM guest house. It was a new place, which was recently built. This blessing fit right in with what the Lord told us about doing new things in our lives this year. The guest house was fully furnished, and we even got to use the outside laundry room with a washing machine and dryer for our clothes. There was running (hot!) water, city electricity and 2 bathrooms. Chayah also found a basket full of toys in the living room area!

We knew staying in this place was of the Lord. It was very restful for Tiffany. So, we decided to stay one extra day and just hang out some more and relax. Before we went to Malawi, someone whom we had met recently actually gave us a donation which paid the cost of staying at the guest house.

Malawi: After being in the certified Nissan repair shop for

2 days, I went to another place for tire alignment and balancing.

Of course, in my heart I would love to share some more ministry updates with you. After all, that’s what this blog is for. But, it’s also important to let you know about the other things we do. In some ways, how we live here is not very different than the way you live in the U.S. We do lots of other things besides preaching, teaching, interceding and other ministry in the city and villages. There’s washing clothes, cleaning the house, bathing, cleaning the house some more, helping the kids with homework, homeschooling, fixing the house, fixing the car, etc.; and, all the other normal things that one can expect have to be done. Usually, every day has its share, and often its fill, of ministry to others in one form or another. We minister hard, and are learning how to rest well, also. Rest is very important!

Just because you need to know more about where we live...

Close by our house, I gave these guys, and others, plastic bags to collect the bugs that were escaping
from holes in the ground. They were eagerly collecting handfuls of them to eat.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany

If you haven’t done so already, check out our Newsletter. Click here: Fruitfulness Newsletter OR paste the following URL into your browser
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B2525kXVPtQrNDlkMmVmNzctMzBjNC00M2Y5LWFjNzMtZGQwMzA1ZTE2YjVm

Happy New Year!

2012-01-13T23:11:00.000+02:00

A Year To Know God More Intimately

Coming into the New Year, the Lord has already been doing new things. Newness and fulfilled promises are two of the things the Lord has been putting on our hearts for 2012. But, more excitingly, we believe God wants to reveal more of Himself to us that we might intimately know Him in 2012 like we’ve never known Him before. Since we know the Lord can speak through His works, and that His works can give testimony to things He wants to do in our lives, we are taking note of some new things the Lord is already doing at the start of this year.

Dreams
Many of you may be like my wife, whom God speaks to through vivid dreams. I hardly ever receive dreams like that. But, early one morning I had a dream about the prison. When I went to minister in the prison that day, the same things that had happened in my dream were happening before me. Things that usually don’t happen in the prison were happening just like they had in my dream. So, that morning in the prison, I shared the same scripture that I saw myself teaching the prisoners in the dream I had.

Then, there was a Muslim man I had seen in my dream. When I went to the prison and saw him, I pulled him aside and began to prophecy over his life concerning Jesus, the Son of God, calling him. He just shook his head in acknowledgement. The Lord had already been speaking to him and drawing his attention to the truth of Jesus Christ (just like the Lord had showed me in the dream).

Healing came in a different way
During ministry time at Assumane church, one little girl came up because of pain in her head. The Lord told me to walk around her 7 times. I lost count walking around her, so I walked around one more time just in case it hadn’t been 7 times. Then, I shouted because that’s what the Lord told me to do. The Lord healed the girl. Through a Yao translator I asked, “When did the pain go away?” The little girl responded, “When you shouted.” We encouraged her to stand in front of the other children and testify of her healing.

Through His works that the Lord is showing us, we are encouraged to seek Him and know Him more intimately - like never before. Join with us and pray that the Lord would continue to draw the hearts of people to Himself. Pray that our hearts would remain open to experience and know Him more and more in 2012 (Philippians 3:7-8). However the Lord wants to work in our lives and ministry is fine with us. For through His works, God is making Himself known and bringing glory to Himself through our ministry, the beautiful people of Mozambique, and beyond.

If you haven’t already, check out our Newsletter. Click here: Fruitfulness Newsletter
OR paste the following URL into your browser https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B2525kXVPtQrNDlkMmVmNzctMzBjNC00M2Y5LWFjNzMtZGQwMzA1ZTE2YjVm

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Newsletter - December 2011

2011-12-29T18:46:00.000+02:00

Fruitfulness for a Greater Harvest Newsletter

We are pleased to be able to send you our Newsletter for 2011. It has been a year of abounding in the goodness of the Lord. In the newsletter, we've also included a few family updates.

You will receive the newsletter (in .pdf format) in a separate email. Feel free to share our newsletter with family and friends.

You can also download the newsletter online. Click here: Fruitfulness Newsletter 2011

If you are not able to view the emailed version of the file, please contact us and let us know.

In Christ's love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Merry Christmas from the Haynes Family

2011-12-24T23:06:00.000+02:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS

We hope you are having a wonderful time

celebrating Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord

The prison celebrated Christmas on Friday, Dec 23. I found out late about their program. But, thank you to all of you who quickly responded to bless the prisoners and guards. I couldn't find 260 soda bottles before Friday, but I told the prison that I still plan to donate them before New Year's when the stores hopefully replenish their stocks. We did purchase 260 packs of strawberry cream cookies, 300 pieces of chocolate candies, 300 pieces of bubble gum, and 20 packs of Rocklets (like M & M's) just for the guards on duty that day. The prisoners loved the treats, and the wrappers were thrown all over the area where they were allowed to eat them.

Saturday, at the center we all gathered together for lunch. Some kids presented a Christmas dance.

We also had a Christmas gift exchange, food and a time of worship.

Christmas Day: In Assumane church we had a time of worship then food and fellowship.
(Above) Kids lining up to try to get the last of the coconut crackers.

A woman from the Assumane church rose up early in the morning to gather wild flowers from the field
so that she could decorate our church for Christmas.

Merry Christmas! In Christ's love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes and children (Amerel, Isaiah, Chayah, Berasia)

Opportunity to Be a Blessing: Prison Ministry

2011-12-18T23:36:00.000+02:00

We have a few days remaining before Christmas, but I wanted to give all who may be interested an opportunity to be a blessing to the prisoners for Christmas.

My wife and I are going to do something small, but special, to remind all the prisoners (both believers and non-believers) of the free gift that Jesus offers. We will purchase 300 sodas and bubble gum. That’s about $120. These are simple items that prisoners may never taste while incarcerated. (Remember that the prison gives the prisoners beans and cema twice a day, every day).

If you’d like to help out, this is what you can do by this Thursday, Dec 22. Send your donation to our home church. Then, after you send in your donation, immediately send us an email to let us know how much you contributed. Donations can be sent to:

Church of the Living God
199 Deming Street
Manchester CT 06042

Please include “Haynes Family” in the memo to direct the donations to us.

You can also donate online at: http://www.clgonline.net/missions/missionaries.aspx
On the web page, click on the link by our photo and follow the directions.

Early Friday morning, I will be going out to purchase the items for the prison. This year the prison will be holding a special event on Friday to celebrate Christmas.

We’re also going to buy some special food for the group of believers that I meet with every Tuesday.

Please pray that God would use the believers in the prison to be a light, and give them opportunities to share the gospel in love and power this Christmas. Thank you for praying with us and being a blessing.

Blessings and love. Cheerfully,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Mom Visits Mozambique Again

2011-12-03T13:52:00.001+02:00

We have Mom (a.k.a Grandma to our kids) visiting us here in Lichinga for a several weeks. As you can imagine, it’s nice to have people visit us from the U.S. While we are continuing in ministry, here’s a glimpse at some of the other things that we have been up to.

Tyren's mom getting to know Berasia

Grandma with all four kids

We drove nearly 2 hours to visit a Macadamia Nut farm where they irrigated their fields using a pump which is a motor from a Toyota dual cab truck powered by steam produced from a wood furnace. We had to cross the river below in our truck just to get to the farm.

The bridge collapsed so we took the scenic drive through the river

We celebrated Isaiah’s 8th birthday with all the kids at the center. The kids loved the water balloon toss/roll into holes.

Isaiah standing next to ice cream and the cake Grandma made using cupcakes

Amerel celebrated her 11th Birthday with some friends. My mom made a homemade piñata which the girls loved.

Amerel and her friends in the gazebo by our house

Grandma also insisted on cooking a Thanksgiving meal for us. Chicken, one turkey leg, Macaroni and cheese and local veggies. Yep, we ate more expensive food since Grandma is here. But we told her she’ll have to eat like we normally do just to get the real feel of how we live.

We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Thank you for praying for us and taking part of the harvest here in Lichinga and beyond.

Love, Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

The Fire of God

2011-11-17T17:34:00.001+02:00

“…God anointed Jesus of Nazereth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good…for God was with Him” (see Acts 10:38)

We thank God who answers the deep desires and prayers of our hearts to see people not only accept Jesus Christ as their Savior, but also for people to experience the power of God that would transform their lives physically and even emotionally. Below, are a few testimonies of what we’ve recently experienced and seen happen when the fire of God came upon kids to change, transform and bring freedom to their lives.

Night Evangelism – Fire of God on the side of the street

(see Luke 1:37)

After preaching about Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God, the Holy Spirit responded and began to do marvelous things. While praying for the fire of God to fall upon one boy, who had just surrendered his life to Christ, I asked him what he felt. Not knowing how to explain it, he said, “I felt”. Then he wiggled around while moving his hand up and down his body. I told him that was the power of God. Words of knowledge and prophetic words were given, and things were broken off the lives of other kids. These kids experienced the power of God in other “tangible” ways as well. For about 1 ½ hours these youth remained with our ministry team on the side of the street at night eager to experience the power and love of God that was being preached to them. They went home gleaming with the joy and a greater reality of their salvation.

Children’s Ministry – Fire of God falls in a village home

The fire of God was coming upon us while we gathered kids at one of the homes in Assumane Village. Victo was leading worship and we were having a wonderful time with the kids. But the children were being distracted and most ran off while our eyes were closed worshipping the Lord. We knew the presence of God was there so we continued. One of the few boys stayed and continued to worship the Lord and pray with us until the end. That was so precious to see. The Lord blessed him in a special way because he remained with us. This little boy also had pain in his knee. So, we prayed for him. He told us that while we prayed, all the pain in his knee left.

Amerel holding Berasia, Chayah and Isaiah

In Our Home - Fire of God comes upon us

One day, Chayah, our 2 year old, was suddenly afraid to go into the bedroom at night by herself. Instantly, I was aware that the fire of God had come upon us. This doesn’t always happen, but I actually felt my hands get really warm. I held Chayah’s hands and with the power of God upon me, I said, “You don’t have any fear. That’s not what you feel.” Now, if we are not careful we can think that it doesn’t make sense to say that to a 2 year old who was afraid. But, when we obey the Holy Spirit (love looks like obedience), His power is released, and things will be well. The power of God came upon Chayah and broke the fear. She went into her bedroom and came out. Then, suddenly she praised God (of her own initiative) and said, “I'm not afraid”. The Lord opened our eyes to see that our little 2 year old said those words with perfect awareness knowing that she was not afraid anymore.

Now, none of the testimonies above are the way we always get to handle situations with our own kids or others. Sometimes, the goodness and grace of God gently works through our kids over a longer period of time to bring about changes in them (or in us). These times are just as precious as the sudden release of the power of God that we’ve witnessed change attitudes and emotions in a moment. Nothing is too hard for the Lord. People need help, healing, and transformation that only the power of God can bring. Please join us in asking the Lord to demonstrate His power in greater measure as the word is preached in Lichinga and beyond. Lichinga needs the holy transformation that is only possible through the power of God.

Nothing is impossible for God. Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Day of Worship with Children

2011-10-27T21:45:00.000+02:00

Special Day of Worship with Assumane Children
In the beginning of October, Victo and I held a special teaching on worship for some of the children in Assumane Village. The 7 children that we chose are ones whom the Spirit of the Lord has been moving upon, and that demonstrate a love and willingness to live for God when other children are simply playing around and walk away during church or children’s ministry. We brought these kids out of the village to our house so that we could have a quiet environment to pour the love of Christ and the importance of worship into their hearts. We asked one of the older “mamas” from the church to accompany us to help with the kids, and to serve as a testimony of things being done honorably outside of the village. We spent 6 hours together. We played games that encouraged them to give their all for Christ, worshipped a lot, and taught about worship. They also had lunch and snacks at our place. The Lord gave us a special ministry time, where prophetic words were shared that encouraged the kids in specific areas of their walk with God. One little boy nodded yes, when he was asked if God often speaks to him about sharing the gospel with his friends, but he draws back because of fear. Interestingly, fear was a common thing that we were praying about, and we spent time ministering to the kids in this area.

We played dodge ball during one of the break times

Worshipping and waiting the Lord

Worship in the Home
When we pray and fast, the Lord can answer us by providing an opportunity that gives us the choice to start walking in the answer to our prayer or choose not to for whatever reason. Well, I was praying and fasting for my kids. The day after I ended, the opportunity came. Our daughter had something tied to my keyboard stand, and the keyboard (which was in its protective case) fell hard onto our cement floor and broke. I had that keyboard for a long time and had paid a lot of money for it. Currently, my daughter had been using it for her keyboard lessons. Now, it no longer works at all. But, this was a perfect opportunity and answer to my prayers. Instead of getting really upset, I made the decision to uphold the value my daughter has in Christ, even in the midst of her needing to be corrected. The Lord helped me greatly, and with ease I ended up speaking words that honored her, confirmed her value in Christ, and encouraged her to trust God who works all things together for the good to those who love Him… (Romans 8:28). After, she prayed that the Lord would continue to give our family joy, even when bad things happen!

I included this last testimony because, being a missionary, the wonders and workings of God are just as important for our own children as they are for the other children like those in Assumane Village. Our prayer is always, what we experience “out there” in the village and the city, must be our daily experience at home. In both situations above, God was worshiped and as a result, He was exalted. I no longer have a keyboard (for now), but what was more precious and important was protected. That is, my daughter didn’t allow the sorrow of a very big mistake to overtake her, but rather she chose to focus on seeing Jesus in the midst of a bad circumstance. It may sound strange, but I ended up rejoicing in Christ more because of His mercy within this circumstance than what I would have done if it had never happened. Praise God who protects what is most important and preserves the treasures of the heart which are of incomparable value!

Blessed in Christ’s love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

A New Day has Dawned: The Birth of our New Baby!

2011-10-16T18:17:00.002+02:00

Monday, Oct. 10, before the sun rose, Tiffany gave birth to a beautiful little girl. It was the shortest delivery out of our 4 children. This time, we had our spirit-filled missionary friend and professional mid-wife, Sandra, to help deliver the baby. She did a great job! So, I was able to give due attention to my wife, coaching and caring for her during the process. Our missionary friend, Melissa from N.Y., watched our kids and took care of heating up all the water, baby clothes and other things.

We want to share with you a little about the wonderful working of God during the whole labor and delivery process. At the beginning of the labor, our whole family got together to worship. It wasn’t a ritual, it was because the presence of God came upon us in such a powerful way that we were released from everything else into a time of worshipping and adoring the Lord Jesus. All during the 3 stages of labor, the presence of the Lord was upon my wife and I in a very special way-in a way that I don’t remember sensing or feeling in the birth of our other three children. Although the recent birth of our 10 lb. plus girl was natural, it wasn’t a pain-free process for Tiffany. Yet, she worshipped the Lord through it. We both worshipped, not only with song, but with believing hearts, and hearts focused on Him and nothing else. Every time I saw my wife in pain, and me being completely helpless to remove it, worship naturally poured out of my mouth. As I prayed, asking the Lord to take the pain away, I had a thought that might sound foolish to some. But, radical obedience is a conduit of blessing (and answered prayer). So at one point I told my wife what the Holy Spirit told me, saying that every time she felt pain, to tell Jesus, “Here’s another offering for You. This pain belongs to You. You died for me and are worthy to carry it.” My wife told me that she actually started believing that, and that the Lord had been speaking to her concerning the pain, “it’s not really that bad”. Imagine that! If you have faith and know Jesus, you know that when He speaks, His words create our life, and if we believe, we can become conscious of no other reality than what He just spoke to us. Another thing was that during the delivery process the Lord actually let me know when my wife was about to have contractions (during the pushing stage) and when they would end even before she knew. Actually, He let me know so many things before they happened and before my wife knew, things too numerous to explain in this short blog. This was a great comfort to my wife. Remember, we didn’t have any special monitors or other computerized equipment to know this.

As my wife and I talked about all that the Lord had done, we realized that the Lord gave us a precious and special delivery. So many things happened during the process and birth itself that prophetically testified of the many things the Lord has done and spoken into our lives and ministry this year. Most importantly, both of us could see how much the Lord has done in 2 years, since Chayah’s birth, to bring worship and love for God into greater depths of our being. As we received our little girl into our arms, we were actually receiving a gift we didn’t expect or deserve… that is, we realized that the Lord had brought our family into a level of deeper and more intimate life with Jesus Christ that we desired. It was a true birthing experience indeed.

I hope you realize that this is our testimony of faith in Christ, and not just a man’s perspective of a birth experience. Because of Christ Jesus, we can have joy and find value in the midst of suffering, pain and persecution for righteousness sake. Our Lord Himself taught us this (Hebrews 12:2-3). Be encouraged and have hope with joy in the Holy Spirit. In the midst of your difficult, trying or seemingly endless situations, may you dare to ask the Lord to work His purposes in and around you, and fill your heart with the joy of the Holy Spirit and invincible hope in the process.
Love,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Trusting God

2011-09-24T22:43:00.000+02:00

New shocks: 1 of 3 costly replacement parts on
our truck. We did 2 of the jobs ourselves.

Have you ever had a day or a period of time when things just weren’t going well? For the past several weeks, we’ve been having times like that. Some things were breaking while other things just stopped working although they were perfectly fine. We even found a dead mouse lying in plain view under our couch!

During this time the Lord has been speaking to our hearts about trusting Him. We understand that Jesus is not afraid or ashamed to make use of the normal things of life to teach us. We found deep comfort in simply knowing that He was using the challenging and bad circumstances to draw us closer to Himself. In the midst of stuff, issues, and problems, we focus on Him, utterly convinced that our life is in Christ and not in our situations or circumstances, whether they be good or bad. Therefore, we don’t have to be shaken or deterred. We choose to give Him thanks. There is no place like low. So, we worship Him. Joy fills our hearts, and amazingly, although the situations do not change, we see the Lord’s will being fulfilled within us and around us. We cannot help but praise Him more. God is good, only good, all the time.

There’s No Place Like Low

One place where I am reminded to trust God is the prison. It’s a good place to see the power and the reality of the gospel of Jesus Christ. After worshipping together and a time of teaching, we were all on our knees praying. The Lord did something because I suddenly began to pour out my love on Jesus. Others joined me as we humbled ourselves before Him. Then it happened. No worship with songs, no music, but the presence of God came in a mighty way as we prayed. He came as we were surrendering ourselves anew. In that moment, I saw that the Lord was bringing the prisoners an understanding of the low place of worship – this is where we live. No matter how bad (or how good) the circumstances around the believers in the prison, there’s that victorious “place” of worship that Jesus freely provided for us. And here, victory always reigns. Here, we realize and experience that Jesus is everything we need. The prisoners could live in the prison, yet still be in His presence, and find joy, peace, a refuge, receive strength, wisdom, comfort and hope no matter the hopeless and despairing circumstances that are often around them in the prison. In this moment, many begin to see that their own strength, wisdom, plans and the like do not cause them to prevail in life. But, when they surrender all these things to Jesus, worshipping Him, they find that Christ helps them and becomes all that they need. He is always strong, has all wisdom and counsel, is ever merciful and is more than ready to help them. Please join us in praying that what the Lord started continues. The presence of God is never optional. If these men grasp and guard what the Lord is doing in their hearts, it will utterly change their lives, open their future, and allow them to step into their individual destinies.

Chayah, Amerel and Isaiah in Malawi

Thank you for praying, donating and believing God for greater things in Lichinga. We know the Lord wants to do more. We are ready to expand our vision, and be even more broken in heart to see our Lord pour out His love and power upon Mozambique and the nations beyond. Speaking of expanding, please remember to pray for our family as we are about 4 weeks away from giving birth to our new baby. Hallelujah!

Grace and love, Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

When we are too tired to walk, we decide to run anyway. True faith makes Christ our sufficiency.

The Kingdom of God Revealed through Floorball

2011-09-09T15:36:00.006+02:00

The beauty of Lake Nissa in Metangula, Mozambique

I drove 100 km (62 miles) outside of Lichinga to Metangula, a town that is situated on Lake Niassa. The main floorball coaches and Claude, the young man from Switzerland who has been training them and discipling them, were meeting at the lake to celebrate Claude’s last few weeks with them. They slept in tents on the beach within a lodge’s property. I slept in my car on the same beach close by them. There was a guard nearby, but when I asked him how well he had slept, he said he slept well through the night. I thought that would be the case, so I slept in my car :)

These young Mozambican youth are special treasures. Many are called into something much greater than what they ever expected - Floorball, a vehicle through which Jesus Christ wants to reveal His glory into the sports arena; Floorball, a dream that God has given to Mozambique with little Lichinga being the only place in all of Mozambique that has this sport. When one government official, who travels all over Mozambique, requested a special meeting to see them practice, he saw them praying together before practicing. He remarked on how different these youth were, and how their faith in God was a good thing in sports.

Hanging out before Dinner

As I spent time with them on the beach, my heart silently ached and was in prayer for these young men. I wondered if they were really prepared to walk with God in His dream for Floorball. I pray for them because I know the glory of God only remains in low and broken vessels, and because I long for them all to have a relationship with God that is fully dependent upon intimate experiences that only Jesus can bring to lives abandoned in His presence.

We had fun burying coaches

The Lord taught me so much more while sitting on the beach and playing with these young men. I would have chosen certain things to happen on that day at the beach. But, the Lord is a great teacher and He opened my heart to what He prepared in the midst of my longing for my friends to experience more of Him. The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (and only in the Holy Spirit). We experienced the kingdom all day long. One of the coaches took it upon Himself to cook for all the rest. He did it without complaining. That’s peace. We had more than enough spaghetti, and these young men could have eaten all of it. Instead, we saved a bunch and shared it with some very hungry children that were staring at us, but not asking for anything. Those children were so happy. The peace and joy of God was operating in our midst. One of the coaches joined me as we talked to them about Jesus. After eating, the children washed out the basin and returned it and also filled it with water from the lake (this was to wash our plates in). At another time, there were a few other children who wanted to hang around the coaches. They wouldn’t leave. This was a God moment. So, Felix, one of the coaches, translated for me as I explained to them about the salvation of Jesus Christ. Two of the three little boys gave their lives to Jesus with joy on their faces. The third boy prayed with us also, but since his main language was Makua, and not Portuguese or Nanja, I’m not sure how well he understood. Righteousness came in this moment as we experienced His kingdom yet again.

Please join me, join us all, in believing God and asking Christ Jesus to consume all of these young men’s hearts, and for the glory of God to fill Floorball like never before. During the time at the lake, I learned that in His own way, the Lord is fulfilling His purposes in this Floorball team. If we trust God and if we live utterly dependent upon Him alone, His dream for Floorball will become a reality. Your kingdom come and will be done, oh Lord!

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

The Work of the Lord in Assumane Church

2011-08-29T21:16:00.000+02:00

Some adults and children enjoying the meal and fellowship

A Love Feast

This year, the Lord has been directing me to teach on various things to establish foundations for the church in Assumane. We recently ended several weeks of teaching on communion. This month, we decided to set apart one Sunday to have a different kind of service. Everyone brought food, the normal food they eat every day. No one brought chicken or other kinds of meat, cheese, soda or anything like that. It was a time to share the love of God with one another by simply sharing what we had in our homes, whatever that might be. So, right after a time of worshipping God through song, we ate and ate and spent time with one another. Tiffany and I cooked rice, and contributed a special, non-traditional food – a cake with frosting.

Testimonies from the Assumane Church

Jordão has been making bricks out of the red dirt that is everywhere around us here in Lichinga. He always prays when he is making his bricks. This past Sunday, he said that people were coming to him asking why his bricks weren’t cracking. They said, “You are using the same dirt we are using. All of our bricks are breaking (before we even get to burn them), but yours are not.” He testified of how God answers prayer, and how the Lord helps us do what He has called us to do.

Have you ever had an idea that seemed so simple you wondered why you didn’t think of it sooner? I recently had a God idea like that. Since last year, my heart has been aching to see some of the gifted people in church take initiative in various areas. Instead of doing things just to get them done, my wife and I have been trusting in God to stir up the hearts of people to use what God has given to them. This past Sunday, the Lord gave me the idea to ask a specific person to take care of the project to rebuild the church outhouse. I thought, “Why didn’t I think of this sooner? Thank you, Jesus”. Before I could mention it to the individual, the same day the Lord told me, Jordão gave an announcement in church and started organizing things to fix the outhouse. Being a missionary and the one who is leading the church, I was excited that no one is waiting for the “missionary” or “Pastor” (as some call me) to do things. Another individual organized people to clear the tall grass from around the church. This kind of initiative is exciting to see, and both an answer to prayer and the fruit of labor that has gone on this year. To us these things are great. They testify that people are realizing their value in Christ, seeing the need to accept the privilege of responsibility in the kingdom of God, and more people are “taking ownership” of the physical building of the church. Thank you so much for your prayers for Assumane.

Although you do not get to see the answers to your prayers firsthand, know that the Lord is bringing forth a great abundance through your prayers. Not only are lives being changed, but the people you impact are impacting others. Floorball, the prison, village ministries and street ministries are areas where people who are being touched through your service are reaching out and touching others. We thank God for your partnership and the open doors that He presents to us through your gifts of prayer, donations and other forms of love.

In the goodness of the Lord. Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

A New Start from the Prison House

2011-08-14T15:04:00.003+02:00

Recently, one of the leaders of the Tuesday meetings in the prison was released after spending 7 months in prison (he was found innocent and then released). I’ve always wanted to be able to help some of the prisoners re-integrate into the community. We’ve given Mr. Daylight (changed his name for this blog), who is a builder, some work to do at our house. For a few weeks this is helping him to have a fresh start and provide for his family of 9 (including his wife and 7 children).

People who work at our house are told that they are here to serve the Lord and not just have a job. The real work is what the Lord will be doing in their hearts while they offer themselves to the Lord through their labors (Romans 12:1, Colossians 3:23).

The first few weeks it took about 1 ½ hours for Mr. Daylight to walk from his house to our house, then another 1 ½ hours to return back to his house after working. (We decided to give him an advance to buy a bike. Now it takes him about 45 minutes one-way.) I told Mr. Daylight that the presence of the Lord is over our center and as he works the Lord will be speaking to him. Well, after the first few days, Mr. Daylight came to me and told me, “The Lord asked me why I was here.” “What did you reply?” I asked. He said, “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t know what to say.” Then another day, Mr. Daylight came to me and said that the Lord asked him the same thing again, but he didn’t answer. I prayed that the Lord would help him to respond. The next day after I petitioned the Lord, Mr. Daylight was very excited. He told me that the Lord responded to him during a dream explaining that He sent him to work at my house to bless him. Mr. Daylight woke up from the dream, and because he was so excited, he woke up his wife while she was sleeping just to tell her.

During the day, I often teach Mr. Daylight things from the Word of God – whatever specific words the Lord gives for him. He’s so joyful about what the Lord is revealing to him that he goes home, sits with his family, and shares with them the scriptures and things that I often teach him during the day. Tiffany and I were amazed to see that just out of shear joy, this man is sharing the word of God with his household. Jesus is also using his life as a testimony of His love and faithfulness to others who are in awe at the blessings of God that are on his life now-even though he was in prison and lost his previous job, some friendships and a lot of other things he had previously owned.

In the midst of the various ministry activities the Lord has us do here in Mozambique, our focus is still the same. We have been called to prepare people’s hearts for His presence and open the way for people to walk in their divine destiny. As you pray for Mozambique, boldly seek the Lord and ask Him to reveal His glory in this city and raise up people to be carriers of His presence.

Mr. Daylight and Jordao are working together to build our new storage shed.
This project is a result of a prophetic word, from Leviticus 26:10, that has been burning in our hearts this year.

Dancing Hill (our gazebo) has finally had it's walls cemented and smoothed, and the cement floor laid down.
Once the tin roof is nailed on it'll be ready to use.

Blessings from on high,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Haynes Missionaries: Questions and Answers

2011-07-31T17:04:00.006+02:00

We wanted to give you some responses to questions we are asked about living here in Mozambique. We hope this will give you a better understanding of what our life here may involve.

Because of the dollar to Metical exchange rate, is it very cheap to live in Mozambique?
Lichinga is very expensive compared to other places in Mozambique because everything has to be trucked in to this little town in the mountains. $1 U.S. equals about 27 Mozambican Mets. This does not mean that $1 U.S. equals $27 U.S. here. For instance, here are the current estimated prices of things: 1 gallon of gas is about $7.25. 2 liters of ice cream is about $13. A small box of cereal is between $7 and $9. A 55 pound bag of rice, a staple food for us, is $23. One pack of spaghetti is $0.67. A pack of elbow macaroni is $0.90. We eat a lot of good food from the outside market which is cheaper – such things as tomatoes, onions, peppers, cabbage, lettuce, and carrots. We don’t eat like we did in the U.S., but we listed the above prices to let you know that everyplace in Africa may not be as cheap as many think. (Figures above were calculated based on the current U.S. exchange rate. The rate has recently been dropping so things are getting even more expensive).

Is Tyren mainly called to missions, and Tiffany’s main job to support him by caring for the kids and house?
Before we first met, both my wife and I knew we were called to serve God overseas. Being missionaries was something we both dreamed of doing. Together, we are both walking in our God given destiny.

What does Tiffany do?
She does a lot of things… too many to list. But mainly, she home schools our kids, intercedes for our center and for our individual ministry (of course,) heads up hospitality, helps other missionaries adjust, ministers to people, and more. Often I look at my wife in awe. She is a great encouragement to me, teaches me by example about walking in the grace of God, and is a person who exemplifies worship as a lifestyle.

Are there wild animals around like lions, elephants, and hyena’s?
Yes and no. We walk around at night and our children play outside by themselves because it’s very safe. There are snakes, jackals (that’s what they look like), and mongoose type animals; but no elephants where we are. There has recently been a sighting of some type of wild cat with spots about 5 minutes up the road from where we live. Generally, hyenas and lions live further away.

What kind of food do you eat?
A lot more things are available in Lichinga now than when we first arrived, but it’s nothing like what’s available in the U.S. We eat things like rice, potatoes, cema (maize flour boiled until it’s like mashed potatoes), tomatoes, onions, apples, minnows-and sometimes chicken, ground beef, and lake fish. Yes, some people in our family have eaten cooked insects.

Do you get “paid” to serve as missionaries?
No, we don’t get paid by Iris Ministries or a government. People who have a heart and vision for what God has called us to do donate as they desire. If you’d like to send us a donation, see http://www.tandthaynes.com/donate.html.

Do your children like Mozambique?
Yes, our children love Mozambique. They have friends here. Two of our children, Isaiah and Chayah, have lived most of their lives here.

Is it very hot all the time?
Here in Lichinga, June and July are cold, dry months. It is said that the temperature can go down into the 40’s. We’ve experienced low 50’s during the day. To us, it’s quite chilly. We sleep with hats on (and sometimes a scarf, also).

Where do you live?
We live on the Iris Ministries Center in Lichinga. We have our own house that we built in 2008, mostly through one generous donation.

Do you have running water?
Yes, again through a generous donation, we have our own machine bored well which we use to have water pumped into a tank with an electric pump and a generator. From the tank it's gravity fed into our house. No, the water is not hot! We have cold running water and usually boil water to take warm bucket “showers”.

Do you have electricity?
We don’t have city electricity. We use 2 solar panels for all of our electric needs. We use them mainly to run our small DC (battery powered) fridge, laptop, lights at night, and IPod. With solar energy, sometimes we have to choose when and if to use certain electronics in order to preserve the energy for other items.

Yes, we are thoroughly satisfied in Christ and like living here in Mozambique. For now, this is home. It is the place where we live, and Lichinga is the city from which extend the gospel to the nations. Pray for us and Lichinga with expectation and joy, because our God is going to do greater things than what we can possibly expect. God is good, real good!

Captivated by His glory and overwhelmed with His love,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Updates from the Haynes Family

2011-07-08T21:41:00.001+02:00

We found extra large "lego" type blocks for Chayah

Surprises (Beyond What We Imagined)

We knew 2011 was going to be a year full of the Lord’s goodness and surprises. We were pleasantly surprised (ok...shocked) to find out that Haynes baby #4 is well on the way. Baby is due toward the end of this October. Yes, we’ll have the baby in Africa again.

By the way, Chayah turned 2 years old on June 25. Amerel will be 11 and Isaiah will be 8 in November.

Gardening

We are in the process of “revitalizing” our new strawberry patch. We have a few strawberries now, but hopefully with a little manure, we’ll have lots more fruit. We actually have a peach growing on our very small peach tree – about 2 feet high (we just planted it a few months ago). We hope that our apple, masuko (like custard apples) and avocado trees, and our guava tree continue to grow. Our banana trees are doing well, and our second cluster of bananas are springing forth. Tiffany is now trying her hand at container gardening. Hopefully, I (Tiffany) can maintain this type of gardening better than the larger scale gardening I attempted earlier in the year!

Crackers made from the sour dough starter

Cooking

Amerel has started using her recipe book to bake all sorts of things, mostly sweets. She made Chayah’s birthday cake. Tiffany has begun her own sour dough starter and has made pancakes, bread, pretzels and crackers with it thus far.

Bible School Teaching

Tiffany and I are both teaching once a week in the Bible School that started in June. I am really excited for Tiffany since she has a great teaching gift, and the Lord is giving her an opportunity to use it. Tiffany has been teaching on godly character.

Tiffany teaching at the Bible School

Maintenance

Lichinga now requires all cars to pass vehicle inspection. So, I’m (Tyren) in the process of tightening my emergency brakes and adjusting my rear brakes. I’ve never done this before, but that’s where prayer and the Nissan Terrano II handbook I downloaded from the internet will be put to great use (my Dad would be proud). Fixing my motorbike is another story. No one has been able to find/fix the problem. After a while when riding, the chain comes off, sometimes jamming the rear axle causing me to just slide…wheeeee! Getting a new motorbike is the solution for some. But, I am thankful for what the Lord gave me, and will try to continue to use it.

Please continue to pray with us and for us. There are greater things that are yet to be revealed in the city of Lichinga and our ministry.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Joy in the Prison and Fun in the Village

2011-07-03T22:16:00.003+02:00

Joy in the Prison

...In your presence is fullness of joy…(Psalm 16:11)

One of the things that are dear to our hearts is the presence of God. In the prison, focusing on the presence of God (God Himself being in our midst) is the priority. God is using teaching, preaching, and other ministry to help the men experience the transforming power of God that brings them into their destiny. After sharing a word from the book of Isaiah to focus the men’s hearts on choosing the Lord’s ways to enter their destiny, I asked them to form two lines facing one another. In the midst of the presence of God they poured love and life into one another as they prayed for each others’ needs. I pray that the men would continue to pray for one another as their way of life. One man with pain in his head was healed. Another said he was healed from pain all over his body. I shook the man to make sure it was all gone. He started laughing, saying, “Yes, yes.” We thank God for the many amazing things that occur in the prison, but the greatest pleasure is just being with Him.

Assumane Fun Day

In June, we held our second Assumane Fun Day in Assumane Village. Maybe it will turn into an annual event. Members of The World Race, Annelisa’s discipleship group and the current Bible school students joined in the day of fun and lavishing love on kids. For some reason, we weren’t able to play the music over the sound system to summon the village to the event, which led to a smaller turnout than last year. But, we had lots of fun. One missionary, Don, added several races to the event. This year we added a few new stations: the parachute, a drum station and a small obstacle course.

The kids loved the idea of being pulled in sacks

The start of one of the races across the soccer field

May the Lord continue to stir our hearts for the greater things that He has yet to do in our city of Lichinga.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

God Gave a Special Sign in the Lichinga Hospital

2011-06-24T21:15:00.000+02:00

"Love" Lichinga Hospital - Children's Ward

The past Monday, we went to the Lichinga “Love” Hospital again with 3 members from the World Race Team. Victo prayed asking the Lord to do different things. The first room we entered into, the presence of God came in a mighty way. We didn’t think about the patients, but worshipped Jesus singing softly right in the hospital room. Some of us were on our knees. An unsaved woman started singing along with us, and afterwards received Jesus Christ as her Savior. A person from our group gave another woman in the room, who happened to sing in the choir at her church, a prophetic word and ministered to her. She was touched by the presence of God and worshipped along with us in the room. After praying for the 2 children in the room, we moved into another room. This is where we received a very different sign from the Lord.

When we began praying for a child in the next room, the lights in the hospital went out. Then they came back on. We moved to another bed in the same room and began praying. As soon as we began praying, the lights went out again. Then, as soon as we said, “Amen”, the lights came back on again. We were very surprised. When we left the hospital room and entered the hallway, Victo noticed that the 3 rooms we had entered had lights, but all the rooms we didn’t enter were in darkness. One of the nurses was very shocked. She told us that she didn’t understand why some of the hospital rooms had lights, and some of the hospital rooms in the hallway were completely dark. As the rest of us looked down the hallway, we too noticed that the only rooms that had lights were the 3 rooms that we had gone into. All the other rooms we hadn’t entered were completely dark. We then realized that everywhere we walked in the children’s ward had lights, including the hallway, but everywhere we didn’t walk was in darkness.

We knew the sign was from the Lord, and were encouraged to know that wherever we walked that day in the hospital ward, the Lord was removing spiritual darkness and bringing the light of His kingdom.

Praying for a child. The woman in the front holding the child received Jesus Christ as her Savior.

Loving and hanging out with women and children in a room in the Children's Ward.
The parent told us that we prayed for the baby (in the back) during the previous week
and now the baby was doing better now.

You are the light of the world ... Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (see Matthew 5:14, 16; NKJV)

Love,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Update and Hospitality Ministry

2011-06-15T22:26:00.000+02:00

The Tanzania 2011 trip is over, but the power of God is still rippling through the community where we held the event. I received a text message from Pastor D. Elias, Director of Iris Ministries Tanzania, saying that the past Sundays many people were receiving Salvation. Hallelujah! Since I returned from Tanzania, we have been ministering in the city and villages, and doing administrative things at our center. At the end of May we also had a graduation celebration for Amerel and Isaiah who successfully completed the 5th and 2nd grades. We celebrated with special food and gave our children certificates.

Hospitality Ministry

Tiffany is the head of the Hospitality Ministry for Iris Ministries Lichinga, and has been preparing for new visitors. This is the first time she’s had to prepare for as many as 9 people who are visiting our center for the first time. There are 6 people who are part of “The World Race”. They are visiting for about a month. Then, there are 3 more people from the U.S. helping to do construction and other things for about 1 ½ weeks.

When the World Race team arrived last week after several days of traveling, we prepared lunch for them. Then Tiffany had her orientation with them. The Hospitality Ministry here is more than just receiving guests, but it also involves ministry to the individuals and groups that are visiting us, and also helps provide visitors with opportunities to serve along side of us missionaries as we serve the Lord Jesus Christ. Below are some of the things they have done with us. They are also involved in other ministry activities here such as evangelizing, hospital and care ministries, men and women's prison ministries, and building.

Tiffany holding the orientation meeting with the World Race Team (in our house)

Team playing with children in Assumane

We jump rope in different ways with the kids.
(After playing with the kids, we had a beautiful time of worship and prayer)

Hospital: Emily, who's part of the World Race Team, holding a baby after praying for her

In Christ's love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Testimonies: Iris Congolese Pastors/Leaders from the Refugee Camp

2011-05-28T00:04:00.000+02:00

The following testimonies are collected from the 21 Congolese pastors/leaders who currently live in one of the refugee camps in Tanzania. I wanted to get more of their stories, but after one woman spoke for the group, many of the other pastors could not bear listening to more. I’m sharing these testimonies so that you can see how precious the name of Jesus is, and how some people have chosen to trust in the only hope there is, Jesus Christ, even in the midst of unimaginable suffering that many of us who live in the U.S. and other “western” countries may never experience or even consider.

Pastor Deus (to my right), His wife (black t-shirt), me
and many of Iris pastors from the camp

Beatrice, one of the 21 Congolese Iris pastors/leaders who came from the camp, was speaking about the previous and on-going wars in the Congo, its effect on their lives, and the poor conditions of life in the camp. She said, “I don’t know what we’ve done against the Lord to deserve this…our situation is so bad [speaking even of their current life in the refugee camp],” and then she said “because of the war, maybe we thought that God doesn’t [present tense] love us, but when we came to Mwanza [the seminar] we realized that God loves us”. I stopped her and asked the translator to make sure he had translated her words correctly. Then, I realized that Jesus was doing even greater things during the conference than what I imagined. Below are some of the stories that I was able to get from the group of Congolese pastors in their words.

“When the war came to our villages, everyone just ran away. You woke up without clothes on and you ran. Husbands generally leave their families. But, because of their heart for their children, the mothers try to run with their children. Often the children run away by themselves, and we don’t know where our husbands and children are. Some of us made it to Tanzania, but you cry because you are alone. People come and tell you that your whole family is dead.” She said for years the soldiers took them [the women], and used them in a bad way [when I asked some about this afterwards they told me the soldiers raped the women and did many things to them]. Sometimes the soldiers took whole families and burned them in the house. The soldiers found women who were pregnant and cut the baby out, and just left the women lying there. Sometimes the soldiers would cut off your hand, arm(s), put your eyes out and just leave you there. Children were put in flour sacks, which were tied then thrown into the water. Beatrice herself had 5 children, which were killed right in front of her face. She said she was told this story in the camp: a woman ran with her children when the soldiers came into her village, but her 6 month old baby was crying and she couldn’t get the baby to stop. The soldiers were still around her, so she killed her 6 month old baby herself to save the rest of her children who were with her. Some people got a chance to reach the camps. Some people came to the refugee camp naked because they just woke up in the middle of the night and ran when the soldiers came. “The government helped us by receiving us into the camps.”

But now [many years later], the government is trying to close the camps where the Congolese pastors live. One older man sadly admitted, “In the camp I pray a lot, but really, I just complain. I’m just telling you the truth.” The food is spoiled. There’s not enough food. Many don’t have charcoal to cook the flour. (For you my readers, you’ll have to understand that boiled flour made from dried corn and beans is very common in our part of Africa. It’s what you eat most of the time). Each person gets about 3 ½ lbs. (1 ½ kilos) of the flour to eat for 2 weeks. Many parents give most of their food to their children and when parents don’t have enough food, they sleep during the day. They said that they can’t leave the camp when they want to [Pastor Deus was able to help them get special permission to come to the seminar but they had to return immediately]. Even though they received official permission, they were still made to pay money before they were allowed to leave the camp. One pastor said that he had only left the camp twice in 3 years – both times for a seminar. Because the government is closing the camp, half of their group of Congolese pastors in the camp already had to leave. The rest feared leaving because the war is still going on in their parts of the Congo. Because the government wants the refugees to return to the Congo, they closed down the market [where people can get food], and are not allowing people to plant food around their homes.

During the conference, some of the pastor’s daughters were calling them from the camp because they had been 2 days without any food. One called and said, “We don’t’ have any food or anything. What can we eat? What will we do?” (When I was told this, the pastors had 5 more days before they’d return home). Remember, I just wanted you to hear their stories to see that even in the face of difficulties, these men and women continue to believe and hope in Christ. That’s why they came to the conference. (Some might be wondering why the camps are closing down and have many more questions…but this blog isn’t about providing comments, questions or answers on their current situation in the camp or the camp. My joy was to encourage these pastors and minister life, love and healing to them, and help teach and empower them to believe in all the wonderful things Jesus wants to do with their lives now).

Remember, Friday afternoon, we had a special time of ministry to the Congolese pastors. Can you imagine how I felt standing in front of them with a word, a prophetic word, for their good and their future? The Holy Spirit came with love and power that afternoon, and we rejoiced and danced. I know that Jesus continued bringing healing that day, but that much more healing will follow as they continue to pursue the One they love.

I asked the head pastor of the group why he and the group came. He had also lost children because of the war. He said that all 21 pastors had borrowed 34,000 Shillings (about $23 USD) each to pay for transport to come to the conference. They all went around to many people in the camp until they each collected enough money. They borrowed the money to come even though they knew that I would only pay their return fare back. They also knew that they had no way to pay back the borrowed money, but they all borrowed the money anyway. When I had Pastor Deus remind them that all the pastors had to pay their own fare to the conference, but I was only paying their return fare (because that was the original agreement) some pastors cried. They knew they had no way to pay back the money. The head pastor told me that he came to the conference because he knew he would receive encouragement and would be able to take that back to the camp. When I heard that, the Lord told me that was “boldness”. The Lord blessed them for their boldness. Both, my wife and I knew we had to give them money to pay back their loans, so that’s what we did for all 21 Congolese pastors. Of course, that was well beyond the budget we had to spend for the conference. We also gave them money for food during their return journey (as we did with the other pastors). I learned many things from the Congolese pastors, but their example of boldness stood out the most. I have met these pastors, and despite what they are going through, they are mighty men and women of God with ministries and purposes in the camp and a future beyond. They try their best to sell vegetables, and do other things like knit clothes to sell, or visit the sick in the camp. They are mothers and fathers physically and spiritually caring for adults and children who are not naturally part of their families. They are leaders who are bringing vision, restoration and hope to hundreds and thousands. They are contending for the lives of their families and friends, and for the sake of bringing the Word of life (the Gospel) to many others who are in the camp. They are heroes.

In our final session with them we talked about the value of suffering for Christ (as the Word of God talks about it, 1 Peter 4:12-16, 19; Philippians 1:29; 2 Corinthians 7:4). I told them what they already knew, that as they continue to live for Jesus at all and any cost, some might have to leave the camp and may be killed in the Congo, others would continue experiencing times of hunger and having no food, and suffer other harm (for His glory, 1 Peter 4:13-14). But, I believe many had already made their decision. They would consider preaching the gospel a privilege, and go wherever Jesus sent them, even if they had to be killed while serving the one they love, Jesus Christ, who first loved them and laid down His life that they might have an everlasting and eternal life through Him. “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” Acts 20:24 (NKJV)
His love and joy endures, even in the face of suffering and martyrdom.

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Congolese leader praising God during the conference

Special prayer line, "Fire Tunnel". Iris Ministries pastors praying for their fellow Iris pastors/leaders from the camp.

Special prayer time for one of the Iris Congolese leaders

Evangelism: Carrying Love and Honor to Whom God Longs to Give It

2011-05-25T17:55:00.010+02:00

Our time of evangelism was about Jesus teaching us and giving us the priviledge of carrying His heart to people around us.

Praying for visitors who came to the church

During the conference, on the afternoons of May 11 – 12, the pastors went on the streets and conducted house to house evangelism. The second afternoon, the pastors were tired, and so I prayed to ask the Lord if I should send them out. I didn’t think that it was the best idea to send tired pastors out to contend against spiritual darkness. Then, several times the Lord showed me a multitude of people who were taken captive and were being led to do hard labor. They were being oppressed. Then I saw a lion, who I knew symbolized the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (our Lord), that was watching the oppression, and it was full of anger because of what was being done. Through the vision, I knew the Lord was showing me that the pastors needed to go out because He wanted to free people from the oppression of the enemy. I gave the pastors the freedom to go out as the Lord led them. I reminded them to love their neighbors, whether they were angry, rude, drunk or uninterested, and to try to help them in whatever need they had. These are some of the testimonies from their evangelism times. Of all the testimonies the ones that made me rejoice the most were when the pastors testified, "...but, we remembered what you said about the love of God and loving people." Hallelujah! They had understood that because God first loved us (1 John 4:19), we can love Him, and our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:29-31). Pictures from one of our church services are attached at the end of this blog.

Salvations and Healings

• After sharing the gospel with a woman, she began to want to know more about Jesus.

• A boy accepted Jesus as his Savior.

• One group returned with a list of 25 people who had received Jesus.

• A whole family who were merely devout religious people (they went to a specific church) received Jesus.

• Met a rich man who told the pastors that he loved the word of God but he feels like it never enters his heart. The rich man told them that a priest passed by and shared the word of God to help him in his bad situation, but it wasn’t like the word he was receiving now. He also told the pastors, “I have two wives. What can I do to receive the blessing of God?” They shared the gospel, and the man received Jesus. The pastors told him to start going to church, and God will tell him what to do about his bad situation of having two wives.

• Went to a home of religious people (they went to specific church, but never received Jesus as their Savior). They had been using witchcraft and were involved in immorality. The people in the house received Jesus, and a sick person was also healed.

• They went to a home of a woman who went to a specific church (but didn’t know Jesus). After her sick child was healed in front of her eyes, the woman gave her life to Jesus.

• People in the house didn’t want to hear the gospel. The pastors prayed for the bad spirit against the word of God to leave. Then, the people changed their minds and wanted to hear the gospel. They also accepted prayer and then asked the pastors to share more verses from the Bible with them.

• A woman selling peanuts on the side of the road accepted Jesus. She said she didn’t have time for church. They encouraged her to take time to go to church.

• Muslim woman didn’t want to hear the word. They showed her love, and afterwards she accepted Jesus as her Savior.

Miracles and Healings

• The second day of evangelism, one pastor was very tired and didn’t want to evangelize. But, the other pastors encouraged him to go. He joyfully gave these testimonies from his group: They prayed for an old paralyzed woman. She was healed. They also met a man who had crutches. He told them that he didn’t want crutches, but wanted to get up and walk. When they prayed for him, he started running. He told them that he went to a lot of hospitals, but none of them could help him.

• A man had “sugar”, his eyes were not well, and he used witchcraft (to try to get healed). After sharing the gospel, the man burned his witchcraft items and received Jesus. The Lord also healed his eyes and he could see well again.

• A man with a tumor was healed. The tumor was gone.

• A woman came to church to testify after a group of pastors prayed for her family members. Her sick husband was healed.

• Went to a house where people were merely religious. Tried to help them understand their need to receive Jesus as their Savior. A paralyzed man who could not walk or speak was healed. He stood up on his feet.

• Another man with a tumor was healed.

• For 7 years a woman could not have children (in her case it wasn’t because of natural causes). They went to pray for her and the demons said, “We closed up the womb of the woman.” They cast the demons out.

• A pastor testified: The first day our group went out, we saw 25 people saved. But today, God was doing many miracles. A woman with crutches was healed. The whole family gave their lives to Jesus.

I hope these testimonies will encourage you and help you see the reality of the power of the cross of Jesus Christ in everyday people like you and I. The Lord did so much more, both outside the church and during the services, including emotional and physical healings, repentance, and casting out demons. Thank you for the part you played in lavishing the love of God on children and adults, and helping the kingdom of God go forth in life changing and community changing power.

We began every session worshipping our precious Jesus

In His presence, we often ministered to one another...

We were not ashamed to cry out to Jesus as He loved on us...

We sought Him...

and He did not want to let us go...

Thank you for partnering with us...all for Jesus!

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Tanzania 2011 - Brief Update of Conference

2011-05-23T21:16:00.000+02:00

I know many of you have been waiting for our blogs about Tanzania – 2011. Some of you may be willing to read more than others, so during the next couple of days, we’ll post several blogs. You can choose what you want to read. But we greatly encourage you to read the testimonies of the Congolese pastors and the afternoon evangelisms. For now, here’s the first blog with a brief overview of the Conference.

Pastors with their new Iris Ministries T-shirts

The "Love, Honor and Glory Seminar" in Tanzania was powerful, wonderful and full of the presence of God and fun. 39 Iris pastors/leaders came including 21 pastors/leaders who fled the war devastation in the Congo and currently live in heart-wrenching and impoverished conditions in a refugee camp in Tanzania. Some non-Iris pastors and visitors also attended. In a few days, we’ll post a blog with testimonies from the Congolese pastors (you’ll definitely want to read those stories). The Iris pastors had 3 meals a day, but I know that some days during the conference (May 9 -15) we fed at least 60 -70 people for lunch, most likely more. We fed a lot of neighbors, mostly children, whom I was told didn’t have enough food to eat (how could I say no to them?). They even had ice cream on Saturday. We had rice, ground corn made like mashed potatoes (or made of flour from dried cassava), cabbage, beans, other vegetables, fish, and a few days we had beef.

May 10 - 13, I taught twice a day besides special meetings with some pastors. Friday afternoon was a special teaching and ministry time for the Congolese pastors. The pastors also acted very well in our 21st century drama of the parable of the Good Samaritan. Each day before the teaching sessions, we spent time in worship, hosting the presence of God as He refreshed us and filled us with love, joy, peace, vision, and brought physical and emotional healing to the pastors and visitors. During these times the pastors were encouraged to minister to one another, and the Lord gave prophetic words and visions about many things including the work He wanted to complete in Tanzania. Once again, after the teaching sessions the Holy Spirit would fill us with His love and presence. The last two days of the conference, Saturday and Sunday, we showed the "Jesus" film and then "The Passion of the Christ".
For two afternoons, I sent the pastors out into the dusty streets to carry the love of God to everyday people. The pastors carried the love of God in such a tangible way that muslims, other unbelievers and religious people could receive the love of Jesus. For two afternoons, the pastors brought back amazing stories of salvations, hardened hearts opening, healings and demons being cast out of people. These testimonies I will also share in a separate blog.

Raise your hand if this is your first time tasting ice cream!

Smiles and joy eating ice cream and chocolate

Special Pastor’s Day/Gifts

Saturday was a special day for the pastors to meet with the Director of Iris Tanzania, Pastor Deus Elias, to talk, eat and have fun. Saturday, the pastors were served their 3 meals including the highly prized tender beef (beef is widely available in Mwanza and is cheaper than chicken), pineapples, cookies and soda. Of course, all the pastors had their share of 20 liters of ice cream (vanilla, chocolate and strawberry/vanilla mixed) and each had their own Cadbury chocolate candy bar. For most of the pastors, this was the first time they had tasted ice cream. The pastors were very excited to also receive T-shirts with the Iris logo that were especially donated by Iris Ministries. Each one then received an 8x12 group photo of all the pastors who had attended the conference.

Receiving Bibles on the 2nd day of the Conference

Receiving a "Blank Check"
While I was in Tanzania, someone contacted my wife and told her to tell me that whatever I felt like doing for the pastors to go ahead and do it, and she’d pay for it. “Blank checks” are good, really good gifts to place at the feet of Jesus. So, I was able to do what Jesus put on my heart - purchase 35 Bibles and covers for pastors who needed one. Shouts, smiles, dancing and praise to God filled the room as we handed out the Bibles. After receiving a Bible, one pastor shared a dream he had beforehand about receiving a Bible at a conference where "someone was teaching a mighty word of God". He was elated when he received his Bible seeing that the things the Lord shared with him in the dream had come to pass.

We thank you once again for all of your prayers and financial support for Tanzania 2011. It was a mighty work that involved the love of so many people, like you, who willingly poured out their own hearts to support the Iris pastors in Tanzania. So many pastors voiced their excitement of returning back to their villages to share all that they experienced with renewed vision and strength.

Thank you again, and be looking forward to our other blogs - testimonies of Tanzania 2011 – love, honor and glory.

Love and blessings,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Let the Conference Begin!

2011-05-09T19:29:00.000+02:00

Below are some updates from Tyren about his time in Tanzania:

Preparation Time
Things were really busy Tyren's first few days in Mwanza. It takes a lot of people to complete all of the physical details necessary to prepare for the seminar. Friday and Saturday, they shopped for plates, spoons and bowls for 50 people. Then they shopped for 50 notebooks and pens. Pastor Deus and his wife went out to buy rice, cema flour from maize and from dried cassava for 50 people. Pastor Deus said they needed 10 cooks/helpers to prepare food 3 times a day, wash dishes, and carry water. Water has to be purchased down the hill and then carried up the hill to the church for at least 50 people: that’s for drinking, washing hands, washing dishes and cooking. The water will be boiled for all the pastors since it is not always safe to drink the water without boiling it.

Lodging
The pastors will be staying in 3 different lodges. They are traveling from a few minutes to a day or two away. Tyren and Pastor Deus decided to have bottled water and bananas in their rooms just for Monday (because most are traveling from far away). They also hope to find name tags so the pastors can know each other's names. This is the first time in over 9 years that all the pastors will be getting together in the same place.

New Church Opening
Yesterday (Sunday), Pastor Deus held the official opening for the new church location in Mwanza. He insisted that Tyren preach for the opening, so God gave him a word that was just for the church.

Act of Love
It was on Tyren's heart to honor Pastor Deus and his family. He kept thinking that it would be nice to treat them to dinner. Since they (along with Tyren) have a lot of work to do, while he and his wife were out supply shopping for the seminar, Tyren cooked curried vegetables over rice (over 4 lbs) for his family of 8. Either God multiplied the food, or he just cooked way too much. They ate a lot that night, then shared it with neighbors and friends. Still there was a little left over for some people to have it for lunch the next day!

We continue to thank all of you so much for your prayers and support, and for helping us prepare the way for an outpouring in Tanzania.

Hallelujah! God is doing great things in Tanzania! Let His shout be heard in Tanzania!

Blessings!
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

The Lord Gave a Dream about Tanzania 2011

2011-05-01T20:01:00.001+02:00

The Lord speaks through dreams, and He also gives the interpretations. The Lord spoke to Tiffany about my upcoming Tanzania trip via a dream. We'll skip some of the details and just tell you the main points. The dream started like this...The first day of the conference started in a huge banquet hall and everything was being catered. Everything in the banquet hall was really nice. Tiffany was there eating. After the main meal, which was wonderful, the waiters began to serve dessert - vanilla soft serve ice cream in a dish (it was really good and creamy). Minutes later the waiters came out again, this time, serving the same ice cream in a dish, but dipped in chocolate (it had the hard chocolate coating). Tiffany thought to herself that if she had known they had the chocolate covered soft serve, she would have waited. Even though Tiffany already had a serving of ice cream, the waiters allowed her to have the chocolate covered one also. I was also in the banquet hall sitting next to Tiffany. Tiffany turned to me and said, "See, you got ice cream on the first day of the conference and you thought ice cream had to wait for the finale". Then she said, "God said that His beginning point for the conference (ie. ice cream) was what you thought that you would only be able to accomplish at the end. Lift your expectations for this conference. Your highest expectations will be My starting point and it will only go higher (get better) from there."

Actually, I was thinking about having ice cream, chocolate and other things on the last day (when I would be sure we could still afford them). But, I know that the Lord is going to do greater things (in teaching and ministry times, and in all of our hearts) than what I thought starting right at the beginning of the conference. I am praying for the Lord to help me raise my expectations. May He raise all of our expectations. The glory of the Lord will be there. I know all of us at the conference will be surprised, awed, full of joy and in holy expectation. Please pray for the conference and for me. May the Lord stir you up to pray beyond your own imaginations. It's going to be great!

To help you pray during the conference, here's a tentative plan of some things that will be going on. Please, just be sensitive to the Lord for the great things He'll share with you to pray about. I'm not sure how often we'll be able to give you updates during the conference, but we'll try to let you know about the great things the Lord will be doing.

DATES        ACTIVITIES
May 5-9        In Tanzania, preparing for the conference. Buying initial food (for feeding pastors) and supplies. Meeting with Director
May 9-13      Pastors arrive, conference begins. Part one (Tyren's teaching and ministry) ends on May 13.
May 14-15    2nd part of conference. Director meeting with his pastors for fellowship, sharing vision, etc.
May 16         Pastors leave to return to their villages
May 16-18    After-conference activities (wrap up)

Blessings and love upon all of you who have been donating to Tanzania 2011. Thank you, thank you for all of you who are praying for the conference. You are truly helping to give these pastors a beautiful time, and a life changing encounter with the Lord. Believe God!

Shout for Tanzania 2011! The Lord is going to do awesome things.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

God's Faithfulness in Assumane Village

2011-04-24T19:31:00.000+02:00

Child blowing the Ram's horn

The Lord is doing great things in the prison, the hospital, at our center, and on the streets at night and during the day. We can't always share everything that is happening in the ministry, but we try to give you glimpses of different activities to cause you to be aware of the Lord's greatness as He is revealing Himself and His purposes through our lives and ministry. We will share more about Tanzania 2011 later this month. Now, here's a glimpse of what the Lord has been doing in Assumane Village the past several weeks.

Assumane Church

In the midst of Jesus’ increased presence, testimonies of healings, joy, dancing and the Lord’s unfailing love that is gently encouraging the hearts of the members to live in holiness, I can only think of one word to sum up all that Jesus is doing-that is “beautiful”. Jesus is doing a beautiful work in the church.

After years of praying and ministering to children, glimpses of fruit is bringing more joy than the feelings of discouragement and the challenges that I’ve gone through in children’s ministry. One Sunday, during worship, a group of children formed a circle and began to worship God and dance. The little village girl who started it all was leading the whole group. My heart has ached to see children respond in their own way to the presence of God, and in public experience the freedom of worshipping God in their own way instead of following what a missionary might say or encourage them to do. In Sunday school, a group of young boys declared their love for Jesus and willingness to serve Him. In the midst of their declaration, I heard a small voice behind me. The same little girl who led the group of children had raised her voice and lifted her hands in the midst of her friends to declare her love for Jesus.

During mid-week children’s ministry, Victo and I were sitting in the dirt with kids. We began to praise the Lord by making up our own lyrics to sing to Jesus in the local language, Yao. A boy joined us making up his own words to praise God in song with us.

Vico with a boy riding a homemade toy (plastic container)

These things might seem like little things, but they are big things happening in the lives of these children. We are seeing the great faithfulness of God, who is speaking over the things that were sown in the hearts of children over 2 - 3 years. And in this season we are seeing the fruit of things that we’ve labored and contended for. God’s word accomplishes what He sends it out to do. According to a prophetic word given in our church, so we are experiencing – God is searching the hearts of adults and children, and is causing His things that were sown to grow. It’s all amazingly beautiful to see. I am so glad that in times of discouragement, and at times of wondering if the Lord's will was being accomplished through our work with the children, that Victo and I did not give up. God is so merciful in choosing us, using us and leading us in ministry to kids. The continual first fruits alone that are occurring before our eyes are worth it all.

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL OF YOU!!!

May you revel richly in the reward of His resurrection and your being seated with Him (Eph. 2:4-7)

To God be all the glory. More of you Lord!

Love, Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

TANZANIA 2011 - Love Glory Honor

2011-04-19T22:20:00.000+02:00

JAN 2010 - Worshipping in the glory during a 3 day seminar

In a few weeks, I (Tyren) will be heading out to Mwanza to hold the seminar for the Iris pastors in Tanzania. We know that Jesus is preparing wonderful things for us all. Instead of 30 Iris pastors, there will now be 40 attending. Here’s an update that Pastor Deus, Director of Iris Minstries in Tanzania, emailed to me from his travels to inform the pastors about the seminar. He writes “They were very happy and excited to hear of the coming seminar and we went to our church members at Refugees camps in Kigoma. They too were happy and excited so much. I tried hard to ask for their permission and they were granted permission to come to the seminar…They are pastors who have had [so many] hardships because of the wars in Congo. Iris has many pastors there. May I say that this seminar will be of much blessings.” Words in [ ] were substituted with others by me for reader clarity.

Please continue to pray for this special seminar in Tanzania. As you join us in prayer, we know that Jesus will do amazing things that will deeply impact the hearts of the pastors. Details are below if you are still considering to donate toward this event, especially for gifts for the pastors or their return fare back to their villages. We praise God for the donations we received thus far, and for the testimony of love being shown to the Iris Ministries pastors in Tanzania.

If you send a check, please include "Tyren and Tiffany Haynes" in the memo section and send us an email to let us know the amount you desire to give for Tanzania. 100% of your donation goes to this event.

JAN 2010 - In front of a pastor's house

Checks can be sent to:

Church of the Living God

199 Deming Street

Manchester CT 06042

(860) 648-0520

You can also donate online: www.clgonline.net/missions/missionaries.aspx

On the webpage, find our photo and then click on the link to donate online.

We thank you so much for your prayers and support, and for helping us prepare the way for an outpouring in Tanzania.

Joyfully in love with Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

IT'S TIME: TANZANIA 2011

2011-04-09T20:32:00.000+02:00

T A N Z A N I A 2011

LOVE GLORY HONOR

May 4 - May 19, I (Tyren) will head back to Mwanza in northern Tanzania to serve the Iris Ministries churches and hold a seminar for the main Iris Ministries pastors/leaders.

My wife and I believe that the Lord put it on our hearts to pay for the entire cost of the seminar. At the same time, He gave us faith to trust Him for what He is calling us to do. That includes feeding the pastors, lodging them, and paying their return fare to their villages. Many of these pastors hardly have money, and several that I had met in 2010 did not have a lot of changes of clothes (to say the least). We told them that if they can get to Mwanza we'd pay for their return fare. (The seminar is open to other pastors and leaders, but we are only providing lodging and paying the return fare for the Iris Ministries pastors/leaders.) God will be glorified. Our home church, Church of the Living God, in Manchester CT, which has graciously partnered with us by providing the costs of lodging and feeding the pastors.

Of course, we'd like to lavish these amazing pastors with more love by blessing them with small gifts.

We are asking for your prayers for Tyren and Iris Ministries Tanzania during what we believe will be a fun event, full of the power of God, and one that will have a lasting impact on the pastors/leaders and the communities in which they live. We also would like to extend an opportunity for those that would like to partner with us by sending a donation to help provide for the costs of purchasing special gifts for the pastors and helping with their return fare to their villages.

To donate, please see the information below. If you send a check, please include "Tyren and Tiffany Haynes" in the memo section and send us an email to let us know the amount you desire to give for Tanzania.

Activities in Brief

Tyren will arrive a few days before the seminar to spend time with the Director and help make final preparations.
Hold a 3 - 4 day seminar at the main church in Mwanza where the main Iris pastors and leaders will meet (~30 at most). The teaching of the seminar will be on God's love, glory and honor.
During the meetings, part of the teaching time will involve the Iris pastors (and others that attend) ministering out in the community
Provide food and lodging for only the Iris pastors/leaders during their stay
After the seminar, for 2 days, the Iris Director of Tanzania, Pastor Deus, will meet with his pastors/leaders for fellowship and to impart vision for the ministry.
Provide fare for pastors to return to their villages
If possible, give gifts to each of the Iris pastors (e.g. Iris Ministries T-shirt, bible, or shoes)
After the seminar, Tyren will spend a few more days in Mwanza with Pastor Deus before returning to Lichinga (and possibly visit an Iris Ministries church outside of Mwanza)

Donation Information
100% of your donation goes to this event

Send checks to:
Church of the Living God
199 Deming Street
Manchester CT 06042
(860) 648-0520
Include "Tyren and Tiffany Haynes" in the memo section of the check. Send us an email so that we know the amount donated for Tanzania.

You can also donate online at: http://www.clgonline.net/missions/missionaries.aspx
On the webpage, find our photo and then click on the link to donate online.

Thank you so much! For the glory of God,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Testimonies - Night Evangelism and Assumane Village

2011-03-15T17:51:00.027+02:00

Special Update: Tyren is in the U.S. until the end of March. He came back to surprise his dad for his 60th birthday! Please keep him in prayer and the rest of the family that is still in Mozambique.

Testimony – Assumane Village Children’s Mid-week Ministry

For some reason, only one little boy named Castom joined Victo and I (Tyren) on this day. We felt to give him personal teaching about hearing the Holy Spirit and take him out evangelizing in the village. There were several women on the side of the road, but the Lord only directed us to an older woman. We found out that she had pain in her arms and hands, and that she couldn’t open and close her hands well. Castom joined us in praying for her. When some other kids that come to church saw us praying, they ran over to join us in praying for the woman. The woman said her arms felt a little better. We felt the need to show the love of God in a practical way, so Victo volunteered to finish cutting wood for the woman with her unsharpened axe. She uses the wood to sell and make a little money. While Victo was cutting wood, the Lord healed the woman’s hands, and she said that her arms were feeling better. Through a word of knowledge, we also prayed about issues that the woman was going through as well. Before we left, we told her about how much Jesus loved her.

Testimonies - Night Evangelism (March)

Two muslim young men listened intently as they were told about the Lord Jesus, and the reality of heaven for those that believed and truth of hell for those that don’t want to believe in Jesus Christ. They didn’t except Jesus Christ as their Savior, but one still allowed us to pray that God would help him understand more about Jesus Christ. After we gave him a hug, we sincerely thanked the two young men for their willingness to listen to the gospel, and hear about the words of life.

A drunk man who called himself prophet Moses was being loud, and refused an invitation for prayer. But, I prayed for him anyway and he removed his hat as I prayed for him. Nothing else about him appeared to change, but he was willing to stay with me and he let me put my arm around him (I didn’t want him to walk away). I began to cry out for the Lord's mercy and help. The Lord is good and merciful, and so I didn't want to let the drunk man walk away. Then the Holy Spirit moved in a mighty way, and many of the young men of the group joined in praying for him. The power and presence of God came upon that drunk man. The drunk man quieted down. On his own accord (without anyone telling him or helping him), he bowed his head, and lifted up his hands in surrender to Jesus. I led him in praying to receive Jesus as his Savior, and he also repented of drinking. He confessed he was not the prophet Moses, but that he was a child of God. When I told him to go home, he quietly left saying, "I am a child of God". Hallelujah!!

Because of the loudness of the drunk man (and probably due to my crying out to God, too), two police men came to the area while we were praying. When they saw us, they realized the drunk man was being prayed for. They asked another group that was evangelizing with us if we believed in setting people free. They waited for me to finish praying for the drunken man, and then asked me to talk with them and pray for them as well. Jesus is Lord, indeed!

Please continue to pray for Assumane Village and the people of Lichinga, Mozambique. The presence of the Lord is upon the area, and Jesus is giving us an open door to preach the gospel and demonstrate the love of God to all sorts of people. We hope these testimonies will encourage you to believe God wherever you live, and also encourage you to continue to pray for the work of God here in Mozambique.

Love and more love,
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Visit our website at: www.tandthaynes.com

Night Evangelism - Testimonies

2011-02-27T20:19:00.001+02:00

Christina, a visitor to our center, is taking the photo. She also joined us in evangelizing.

Night Evangelism has been something that we’ve wanted to start in our ministry, but always desired to do it with a team of people. This year, once a month youth discipled by Annelisa’s (Director of the Iris Lichinga Children’s center), youth from Floorball, Annelisa, Victo and myself will have opportunities to evangelize from 7 – 9 at night on the streets, in small restaurants, discos and bars. On the streets we serve some very precious treasures - prostitutes, drug attics, drunken people, and hurting and lost people that turn to alcoholism and bar activities for comfort – people that are often forgotten and scorned due to their night activities. Below are just some of the many testimonies from the various people who went out to lavish the riches of the kingdom on “the least of these” and show them how much Jesus loves them. These are nights full of love, joy and power for us and for the people we meet. The next night outreach is scheduled for Friday, March 4. Please be praying for us and for the Holy Spirit to transform the lives of many.

TESTIMONIES

One man was just in Lichinga for one more night, and then He was leaving for the capital of Maputo. Through a word of knowledge, he was told that he had received an opportunity to accept the Lord when he was younger but hadn’t taken it. He acknowledged that the word was true, and admitted that he never thought he’d hear the word of God in a bar. He accepted the Lord, and was filled with joy because Jesus had given him another opportunity.

A drunk man came up and gave me a hug (and it looked like he wanted to give me a kiss on the cheek too) after he heard me sharing the gospel and praying with people in a bar. He repented for being drunk, made the sign of the cross, and sincerely thanked me for sharing the gospel. Then he got everyone’s attention and encouraged them to receive prayer.

Another man didn’t want to hear the gospel, but then received a prophetic word about his heart’s desire for a job. Then, he began to listen to the word of God, and agreed for prayer and to ask Jesus’ help.

Other people talked with hurting people and drunk people, and bought them soda and juice (some to replace the alcohol they had). They listened to them and shared the gospel to encourage them and help them see a way out of their sins and problems.

Another man that was Muslim refused to listen to the gospel, but Jesus touched his heart and he was soon listening to the only words that can bring eternal life.

Our evangelism team was divided into several small groups and ministered in many different places. Many people in the different groups testified of the presence of God filling the bars, and changing people’s hearts to receive prayer and the word of God.

Another man from Sanjala village received prayer and was visibly filled with joy, smiling and thanking the people who prayed for him.

On the way out of a disco, someone turned to two women and just said a few words, “Why are you here in a place like this. You should only be here if you want to evangelize like us. Next time you have a desire to come to a place like this, stay in your house and pray.” One of the two ladies who was just about to cry, grabbed the person who gave her this word, and said, “Thank you. Thank you.” over and over.

A man slightly drunk thought it wasn’t worthwhile to listen to the word of God. Through a word of knowledge he was told about a physical problem he had in his body that he trusted no one with accept a few close friends. After receiving this word, he quickly turned away from his conversation with His friend and began to listen intently. He confessed that he was Christian, repented, and then He received prayer for his physical sickness. He also repented of his affairs with different woman, and made a decision to accept the call of God on His life to preach the gospel, the call that he neglected since He was a child. Although his friend watched all this, he refused prayer and left the bar.

Be encouraged to continue to pray for us, Mozambique, and also for the wonderful things Jesus wants to do in your lives and those around you.

We love you,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Lichinga, Mozambique

Working Around Our House

2011-02-02T17:53:00.027+02:00

Besides ministering in the city, the villages and at our own center, there are a lot of other things that are going on. We decided to let you take a look (photos) and hear about some of the other things that we are doing.

Gardening
Tiffany is growing a variety of fruits and vegetables including sweet corn, snow peas, lettuce, tomatoes, winter squash, eggplant, broccoli, watermelon and cantaloupe on the side of a small hill within our yard. Tyren has been planting fruit trees- pineapple tops, apple trees and grape vines (from Malawi), a rose bush, and some beautiful flowers (some exotic looking) that are in the fields around our house. We restarted our strawberry patch which died while we were visiting the U.S. last year, and hopefully will have some strawberries by July.

To the right are our first bananas. Our house is in the background.

We also have some avocado plants, mango trees, and orange and/or lemon trees which sprung up from seeds in our compost. We don’t know how well the fruit trees will grow in this area, but it’s worth a try. Tyren also has been gradually hoeing up the local grass roots scattered around our yard. By July/August this type of grass can sometimes reach over 7 feet tall (2.1 meters).
After 2 years, one of our banana trees is giving some fruit. We also have two other large banana trees growing. We will uproot the baby banana plants springing up around the bottom of the main plant and transplant them around our yard.

Below is the garden that Tiffany started. In the middle are tomotoes and pumpkins. To the leftt are snow peas. The bamboo sticking up in the rear is where the grape vine is growing.

Cooking
By now you should know that certain people in our family really, really like good tasting food. We thank the Lord that, unlike times in the past, we haven’t had to eat peanut butter sandwiches twice a day, or rice with only tomatoes, onions and bell peppers. Sometimes Tiffany is able to make granola using her homemade mango, strawberry or banana jam. We also use the jam for PB&J sandwiches, or spreading on homemade biscuits. Depending on where we buy it, fruit is reasonably priced. For instance, large bananas are about 60 cents for 6. Tyren’s friend sells us the strawberries for cheap. Tiffany also makes yogurt using powdered milk and a powdered starter from the U.S.

Lake Niassa
We also drove 1 1/2 hrs to spend a morning at Lake Niassa. We prayed and asked the Lord if we could see a group of monkeys on the way there. Sure enough, we passed a large group. Others who have visited the lake haven't had this opportunity. Here's a photo of Amerel and Isaiah getting accustomed to the water.

Thank you for being a part of our daily life and ministry activities here in Mozambique.

Love, Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Entering the New Year 2011

2011-01-14T10:38:00.008+02:00

We are sure many of you are excited and in great anticipation about year 2011. There are so many wonderful things that the Lord is revealing. For us, it feels like the Lord is opening to us a whole new time full of opportunities, and walking us through a ripe garden giving us glimpses of things He has for us. Rather than sharing some of the things we are planning this year, we’ll just talk about the goodness of God that is abounding at the start of this New Year. The Lord’s goodness is a way that He allows us to experience deeper depths of His heart in such a way that we choose to look away from our own abilities, longings and needs to revel in the sufficiency of who He is. May this year be a year in which the people of God be in expectancy of the Lord’s greatness, and abound in His awesome goodness.

A Day of Many Surprises
Last Saturday, 5 of the hockey coaches, Claude (young man from Switzerland who is training them for a year) and I went to Lake Niassa for the day. On the way, the Lord told us that He would give us surprises. During the 1 ½ hour trip to the lake, we saw two groups of wild monkeys. We tried to feed the second large group we saw, but they backed further away from the car when we got out. Then, two of the hockey coaches that couldn’t swim learned how to swim in what seemed to be about 15 minutes. One of the coaches, Focas, was sick with a fever, and just lay down on the beach without playing or talking much. The Lord gave us another surprise, and shortly after Focas was prayed for, he began to run on the hot, sunny beach and swim in the lake – totally healed. Then there was some kind of bird that would fly, suddenly hover in mid-air for a while, and then quickly dive into the lake for a catch. It was so close to us, and we all watched it in awe. The Lord is good. As the other coaches were walking along the beach, Claude and I were given a special time together, praying and getting “lost” in the presence of God and worshipping our precious Jesus.

Chayah’s Healing
Also, last Saturday, our little Chayah had a fever, stopped playing, walking and talking much, and barely ate for 4 days. She pretty much stayed in mommy’s arms all day long. We usually just write about happy days and great things the Lord is doing. We will continue to do so. But, know that we (just like you) do go through days of hardships, great trials followed by greater trials, and there have been times when we just felt like crying as we still chose to worship our beautiful Jesus. On Tuesday, during a unique time of worship, Amerel exclaimed, “Daddy, Chayah is taking bites of Mommy’s sandwich!”. I hardly took notice as the Lord had so captured my heart, that the only priority and focus was worshipping Him. It did not matter if Chayah was healed at that moment or not because at that moment I was doing what was most important to Jesus. His priorities prioritize everything else and set the stage for every good thing according to His own perfect understanding (Romans 8:28, 31). The Lord is only good, and it is never wrong to always put Him first.

Continue to pray for Mozambique and Lichinga. Believe God to bring in souls, draw people closer to Him, change the atmosphere over areas, and strengthen the believers who are confessing the name of Jesus Christ. This is another great year for the Lord’s Harvest. We believe and desire to be among those who will experience the new and greater things of the kingdom that Jesus Christ desires to bring forth in the earth.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Lichinga, Mozambique

Christmas in the Prison

2010-12-31T20:55:00.004+02:00

We can honor people by preaching the good news of Jesus Christ to them. We can also honor people by treating them as God sees them; by being led by the Holy Spirit to help them realize (demonstrate to them) that what God desires them to be is possible for them. As we interact with people according to the love of God, it helps them to see themselves as the word of God declares that they can be in Christ Jesus. So with a heart full of God’s love and a fresh revelation of honor, I decided to bring Christmas to about 300 prisoners in a greater way. Unlike last year, the prison didn’t send me an official request for money or help to provide food for prisoners to celebrate Christmas. Upon inquiry, I was told that the prison didn’t have the ability to provide anything out of the ordinary for the prisoners for Christmas. So with help from people who graciously donate to us (thank you, thank you, thank you), we purchased over 24 lbs of goat meat (from the outside market), soda and spices for the group that I minister to on a weekly basis. For all the prisoners, which include many unbelievers, we purchased over 335 packs of cookies and 350 small bags of chips. The Lord’s love extended to the guards with chocolate and cookies (wow!). A lady who sells fried bean patties on the street didn’t prepare the right number of patties for all the prisoners, so I asked the prison guard if they could receive these as well. I ate several to let them know they were ok to eat, and not poisoned (remember, it’s the prison). Thank you for your prayers and donations which helped about 300 prisoners and many guards understand more about what Christmas is about – the love of God that comes freely through Jesus Christ.

Unfortunately, while inside the prison, I was not allowed to take a photo of all the items that were dropped off.

Again, HAPPY NEW YEAR and may 2011 be a year full of great surprises!

In the love of Christ,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Merry Christmas With Love

2010-12-21T14:07:00.009+02:00

Merry Christmas
We thank the Lord for all of your love, prayers and support. May the Lord abundantly bless you and open your eyes to the treasure that awaits those who are “sold-out” to Him. May you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year full of Christ’s blessing and love.

Celebrating Christmas in Assumane Village
(Tyren) I’ve been reading through the book of Luke, and wasn’t going to read Nahum when it caught my attention as I opened my Bible. But, God gives good things, so I began reading. Part of Nahum 1:3 says, “God has His way in the whirlwind and the storm.” I didn’t know why I felt it was so important to me, but I kept this scripture in my heart. The focus isn’t on our problems; it’s on the One who is still working His pleasure and good will in our lives in the midst of adversities with power to destroy. The same day, on Friday afternoon, a strong wind and pelting rain came down and destroyed the grass hut we used as our Church in Assumane Village. Then, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the scripture He gave me several hours before. Without yet knowing what we’d do and where we’d meet, I had a great peace. God works everything together for good to those who love Him (Romans 8:28). One thing I know – reality will only be experienced while focusing on Jesus and the beautiful things He is doing even in the midst of circumstances that cannot produce any good. This past Christmas Sunday, we celebrated Jesus outside under the blaring sun and brief showers of light rain that refreshed us. We found ourselves in the presence of God, with some worshipping on their knees as the Lord was touching and preparing hearts to receive more of Himself. The children rejoiced in Sunday school as they each received a pack of cookies, candy and chips. We handed out gifts: scented bath soap, cookies and flavored soda, to all the adults.

Grass hut church which fell down; brick church building behind. The half-standing grass wall is surrounding the pit toilet (hole in the ground)

A few gathered in the light rain and then remained in the hot sun to worship Jesus. We plan to build a temporary grass hut inside the brick church to shelter us from the rain and sun until the new brick building is finished.

Some people didn’t come as they thought service would not continue due to the destroyed church hut, but the few that did come were willing to rejoice in the Lord. During worship, everyone began to move around and pray for one another and speak blessing into one another’s lives (even the children joined in). During this time, a little village boy who didn’t know Jesus Christ walked into the church and agreed to receive prayer, too. The rest of the service briefly paused as this little boy was told about Jesus Christ, and then he gladly accepted Him as His Savior. Hallelujah!!!

Love,

Tyren, Tiffany, Amerel, Isaiah and Chayah

Some Dreams Need to be Canceled

2010-12-08T20:49:00.004+02:00

Dreams that Needed to be Canceled
It was Tuesday and time to go to the prison. On this day I felt kind of “blah”, and like nothing much was going to happen, but ministry isn’t rooted in how we feel. While singing praises to the Lord with the prisoners, I kept having the thoughts about 2-3 people, who weren’t part of the group of believers, having bad dreams and who needed a personal word. After teaching, I told the group of believers what the Lord revealed to me, and then asked them to go out to all the other prisoners around the court and ask them to come for prayer if they were having bad dreams. Some of the believers in my group were surprised when about 15 other prisoners came to ask for prayer. A word of knowledge can open people’s eyes to the greatness of God. I told those who came for prayer about the love of God, and about Jesus the Son of God, whom many of them don’t believe in, who was about to set them free. So many other things could have been said or done on this day. But, we are learning more and more each day to let Jesus have His way and do what’s important to Him. Just imagine. Unbelievers who didn’t want to sit among the group of believers to learn about Jesus Christ, came for prayer because they heard that this same Jesus knew they were suffering from bad dreams and wanted to set them free. People will come to know the Lord sometimes, not by what we say (especially if they don’t want to hear), but by what our actions speak as we give personal demonstrations that answer issues deep in their hearts.

Jesus Heals In Special Ways
“My back hurts”, said one of the prisoners. “I’m having very, very difficult problems”, said another. I told them to run, lift up their hands in victory, and shout the words the Lord directed me to have them say. They had to “shout” quietly because we were inside the prison with certain rules that we must abide by. Right afterwards, the man with pain in his back said it was a lot better. A few minutes later, he said, with a big smile on his face, “The pain is gone.” Jesus knows how to heal, and in the prison I’m learning He heals people in such a way that brings them inner freedom, and opens their hearts to Him.

We are praying that one day we can take some photos of our ministry work in the inner prison yard, and projects we are supporting. We thank you for your support that enabled us to purchase 20 hoes to help with the prison’s garden program. We are also in the process of helping the prison construct a huge oven with a chimney which will prevent prisoners from having to cook meals inside a smoke-filled room for 300+ inmates and many of the prison guards.

Prison Ministry was started in 2009, and focuses on opening the way for prisoners to enter their God given destiny. Currently, each week on Tuesdays, Tyren and Felix, who is a Mozambican coach on the floorball team, meet with a group of inmates who are believers and disciple them as well as equip them to evangelize while they are within the prison. Material provisions are donated for those in need. The Holy Spirit graciously moves to bring salvation to the lost, prophetic words, healing, encouragement and wisdom to both Muslim and Christian prisoners. Projects are also being coordinated with the prison authorities to bring material provisions, activities and other things that will benefit the entire prison population.

With love in Christ,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Sunday School Begins

2010-11-23T22:04:00.005+02:00

Sunday School in the Village: A few weeks ago I started Sunday School in the Assumane church. It starts at 9:00 and right after ending in prayer we start the regular worship service. For several weeks, we’ll be teaching on Jesus Christ and Salvation in order to establish the fundamentals in the hearts of the children. Since many of the children may not come every week, the same lesson is repeated twice before moving onto the next. This series will continue until we see that the children have a good understanding of Jesus Christ and the basics of salvation. The Lord is gracious in giving us the subject matter, dramatized teaching and activities. One Sunday, we even had lots of the adults in church join in to help the children make a paper chain activity.

Prayer for Assumane Church and Village: Please pray for the Lord to break the cycle of fear that is being imposed on muslims in the villages if they visit the Assumane church. Many visit and do not come back, but they welcome us to visit them and pray for them in the village roads and even at their houses. Assumane is such a beautiful village, and many people there are so kind and helpful. It would be wonderful for them to be free to attend the church if they so choose. What we’ve been informed of is that visitors to our church are told that if they continue to come to the church, when they die no one (their family) will bury them, and the church will just leave them to rot or burn their bodies instead of burying them. The people who attend the church trust the Lord, and know that the church community will bury them if they or their families do not have the means to do so. Pray for the Lord to give the Assumane church boldness, power and wisdom in bringing the love and truth of Jesus Christ to the individual people in the village. Pray that spiritual strongholds would be broken and light would replace darkness. The former leaders of the Assumane church are traveling outside of Mozambique, and for an undetermined time Tyren is overseeing the church in Assumane village.

Pray with us and for us as we cry out to experience more of the presence and power of God in the village, the hospital, the prison, the floorball teams and in the streets of Lichinga. Jesus is so wonderful- we just must have more and more of Him in our lives.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Food Stories (for the Beginners)

2010-11-06T23:00:00.002+02:00

Instead of sharing about ministry activities, we figured we’d share some food stories. A missionary has to eat. Here in Africa, there are all kinds of crawling, scurrying, flying, and running things to choose from. Some things are tough, some crunchy and others can squish in your mouth when you bite them. But, don’t worry, we’ll just stick to the normal stuff because we don’t want to discourage any of you who may want to visit us soon (hint, hint).

Food Miracle
One day we had regular beans and rice again for lunch. While we were eating, the Lord surprised us and somehow “put” cheddar cheese into the beans. We couldn’t see the cheese, but ohh, the flavor was beautiful! The next day, we ate beans and rice again. At first, it tasted like regular beans and rice. The Holy Spirit prompted me to ask for cheese again in our beans. So, I prayed out loud and we began to eat. Right after I prayed, suddenly, all of us were tasting cheddar cheese again with our beans and rice. We praised the Lord for His blessing, and thanked Him for the cheese! Yes, our family likes cheese-a lot! And if you are thinking, “Why didn’t they ask for meat?”, well that thought crossed our minds, too. But, Jesus knows just what we need. You are welcome to put that meat request on your prayer list for us.

Making and Tasting New Foods
I (Tyren) have been dreaming of having “pop tarts” for a while, and was thinking of making up a recipe to make some. Yesterday, Tiffany made homemade “pop tarts”- some of which she filled with cinnamon and sugar, and others she filled with strawberry jam which some people from a local Catholic church made. It’s so beautiful how Jesus enables my wife and I to have some of the same desires at the same time. It helps us surprise one another with things we’ve been wanting.

Have you ever wondered how some of the wild animals in Africa taste? A few weeks ago we finally got to taste native African bush meat, that is, wild boar. We had a nice sized leg which we baked and shared with Victo and many of the other missionaries at our center. It had a strong “gamey” taste to it, but was tender and very nice. It tasted more like regular pork after we fried it in oil the next morning.

Now those food stories weren’t bad at all, right? But if you feel for us in any way, remember that you can always get a Priority Mail Flat Rate Box from your local post office and send us some goodies (including canned meat) in the mail! On another note, continue to pray for the Lord to direct our hearts into deeper experiences in His presence, boldness to rise up and declare the word of the Lord, and that Jesus would open the hearts of the Mozambican people to hear His word and do His will.

Jesus is so wonderful!

Love, Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Bringing Floorball to Villages

2010-10-18T15:26:00.005+02:00

Last Wednesday (10/6), floorball (a type of floor hockey) entered the villages of Assumani and Sanjala (instead of Namacula). These activities gave the Mozambican coaches opportunities to organize trainings and “fun” tournaments with children in the villages. As we played in the sunny and dusty fields in both Assumani and Sanjala, Jesus brought much joy into the lives of the children and the adults that were watching them.

Last Thursday (10/7), several tournaments were held all day in the city’s sports arena to host 100’s of kids from around 8 years old to teenagers. The top winners received special prizes, including sports’ shirts or shorts, and everyone who participated received nice prizes. In preparation of the event, Celio and some of the coaches made 4 more goals out of PVC tubing. We used fishing net to cover the goals. We only needed a little bit, but had to purchase the shortest length available - 100 meters long (~300 ft.) and 4 meters (~12 ft.) high. Of course, we had plenty of fishing net left over!

On Saturday (10/9), we had a wonderful time in Namacula introducing children to floorball, and singing and dancing (in the dirt again) to African songs of various languages. I asked Victo to come along with the Swiss Team and Mozambican coaches so he could help run the sound system. Some of the ladies on the Swiss team led the crowd in a silly song in English about a banana. The children enjoyed it so much that the ladies did it again. Then, we attempted to play the Jesus film, but couldn’t get it to run properly. So, we played a powerful film about a muslim man who converted to Christianity because Jesus revealed Himself to him through dreams. Victo preached after the film and many people, including children, gave their lives to Christ. Then we called for the sick, and many people came to the front to receive prayer. In the beginning, some of my Mozambican coaches were kind of timid, but they slowly got courage and began to pray for people. It was very dark outside and I had forgotten to bring the floodlight which runs off the generator. So, I turned the lights on from my truck, and pointed them toward the platform to make “spotlights”. Praise God who does all things well!

On Friday, the Swiss team returned back to Switzerland. Pray that Jesus would help the coaches to continue floorball in Namacula and other areas of the city. Also pray that Jesus would give me wisdom, plans, and greater vision to disciple the coaches and young men and women players now that the floorball camp is over. Sports is a “language” that transcends many boundaries, and our floorball teams are open to everyone. We pray that Jesus would use floorball to declare the good news of Jesus Christ to youth and develop the lives of young people in Lichinga and beyond.

The Director of Floorball4All in Switzerland and Tyren

Team with T-shirts they won in the tournament

Team playing during Tournament

Seeing and playing floorball for the first time in Assumane Village

In the joy of Christ,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Jesus! Lets Play Floorball!!!

2010-10-04T13:28:00.023+02:00

For months I knew that the team of 12 Christian Swiss floorball trainers were coming and what they were going to do. But, after one week, I’m still in awe at the workings of God that are unfolding before my eyes. His creative strategies are too beautiful to capture with words, and only daily experiences can partially suffice. The coaches are receiving advanced trainings in floorball, being showered with love and teaching from the word of God, and in the midst, the Lord is establishing a group of handpicked coaches who will advance the kingdom of God in local villages and districts outside of Lichinga through floorball. We all know that after the Swiss team leaves, there will still be a lot of work to do to continue to prepare and support the coaches. Celio, the head coach, and myself trust the Lord to strengthen us and continue to be faithful with what He started, and with what only He can fulfill.

This week on Wednesday we'll be having "fun" floorball trainings in the villages of Namacula and Sanjala; on Thursday there we'll be a tournament in the city for youth, followed by an outreach in Namacula village on Saturday.

Below are several pictures to give you a glimpse of some things that have been happening.

Swiss and Mozambicans working together to make a goal

Teaching the Parable of the Lost Sheep

A team was started for girls

Our floorball camp was aired on national radio and TV (Celio being interviewed by the radio station)

Handing out diplomas for completing the Floorball Camp (2nd from the right: Director of Sports for the Province of Niassa, Mozambique. He is also in the first photo on top)

Please continue to pray for God's prescence to be upon the Floorball activities and that we will all encounter Him in life changing ways.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Gearing Up for Floorball Trainings

2010-09-25T14:54:00.012+02:00

FLOORBALL
We are preparing for the 2 weeks of floorball training and discipleships that start on Sept 28. A team of 12 Christians will arrive from Switzerland on Monday to run the event. Tyren is busy coordinating things with the floorball team here in Lichinga and working on some logistic details. This is an opportunity for the lives of many young people to be greatly impacted with the love and goodness of Jesus Christ in the sports' arena, and for a lasting impact of the sports' department here in Lichinga as well. (To the left is a photo of kids with palm branches they use as hockey sticks. Our floorball teams use professional looking plastic sticks).

TRIP TO MALAWI TO RENEW VISA
When we returned to Mozambique, we found out that the original information we received about Chayah’s Mozambican residence was incorrect. Since Chayah has a U.S. passport now, we had to apply for her temporary residence visa to remain in Mozambique. We recently traveled to Blantyre, Malawi (~15 hour drive there and back) to apply for Chayah’s visa. We were thankful for our truck, which held up well on the bumpy dirt roads. If you read the news on the web a few weeks ago, you know that prices, especially food, across Mozambique are on the rise. These costs include our yearly visas which formerly cost about $100 but now will cost us more than $800 per person each year to renew (for adults). Children’s visas are renewed every 5 years.

CHOOSING TO GO DEEPER
More than ever, we understand that the cost of true discipleship is everything. Faced with Jesus’ burning passion for the city and children in the villages, we know that nothing will suffice except Him alone. As missionaries, if we want to minister to Him and experience His glory, we can have none of our own dreams, desires and self-ambitions. Time after time, we are laying down more and more for the sake of Jesus who died to give us His life. May God’s presence awaken His people and the lost in Lichinga to the newness of life in Christ, and to the beauty and joy of laying down their plans, desires and dreams to live for His.

In the joy of knowing Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Return to Lichinga, Mozambique

2010-09-06T13:18:00.014+02:00

We are in Lichinga, Mozambique and are doing well. We’ve been unpacking, cleaning our house, getting the home school room prepared for this year, and adjusting to having a walking one-year old in the house.

We thank all of you who made our time in the U.S. truly special. You touched our hearts with love, and even in brief comments; so many of you encouraged our hearts and opened our eyes to see more of the beauty of the Lord’s work in Lichinga and all of Mozambique. We thank you so much for making our time in the U.S. unforgettable, filled with surprises and full of God’s love. You are so special to us.

(A special note goes out to all of those at our church family, Church of the Living God in Manchester, CT from Tiffany: I so much appreciated seeing all of you, even if we only got to chat once or exchange a smile of greeting during our time in the states. You don’t know how much it means to know that we have a church family back in the states praying for us, thinking of us and supporting us with love and prayer! We so appreciate you!)

Wow! We’ve Got Wheels
Our good God did it again. Last week, we purchased a Nissan Terrano 4X4 truck from another missionary who left the country. It’s a 5 seater, with 2 additional fold down seats in the rear that give ample storage room when folded up. Last year, one of our prayer partners sent us a green toy truck saying that she believed that our truck would be green. Well, our Nissan is dark green. Thank all of you who prayed and believed God with us, and supported us to help make this possible. We praise God for the means to advance in ministry, and for greater opportunity to travel together as a family.

Continue to Pray for Mozambique and Us
There’s nothing better than to go “lower still” as Heidi Baker, co-founder of Iris Ministries puts it. Our hearts are on fire, aflame with Jesus’ love that is drawing us ever lower in Christ-like humility. We are less dependent on our selves, but in full expectancy of what Jesus can do in our lives and ministry. Pray with us, believe with us, contend with us as we seek God to fill Lichinga with His presence. We just want more of you, Jesus!

Our truck. Hallelujah!

Annelisa Wilcox, co-leader of children's center, with 2 of the 3 orphans that were just received

Truly in love with Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

View Our Video Online

2010-08-18T15:34:00.004+02:00

We are excited to let you know that you can view a short video about our ministry in Mozambique online.

1. Go to http://www.clgonline.net/missions/missionaries.aspx
2. Find our photo on the page
3. In our section, click on the link called LATEST VIDEO UPDATE!

Enjoy! Please continue to pray that Jesus would use us to impact the nation of Mozambique and beyond with His love and power.

In Christ's Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

The Goodness of God Endures Continually

2010-07-24T02:15:00.013+02:00

The Lord is good. While we have been travelling to visit friends and family from Connecticut to Virginia, God has been greatly impacting our hearts through deeper revelations of His goodness. His goodness is changing our expectation for what God can and will do no matter what situation or circumstance we encounter. Part of a scripture in Hosea 3:5 mentions fearing the “…Lord and His goodness…”. The goodness of God can cause a Godly fear (holy reverence) within us. Here’s some of our testimonies about the goodness of God.

5 years ago our family went on a vacation to “Colonial” Williamsburg, Virginia. As we drove past nice looking hotels and suites, we briefly talked to one another about how it would feel to go on a vacation and stay in a nice place. I, Tyren, had forgotten about the brief conversation. Well, this year, someone gave us a free 4 day/3 night stay in a resort suite in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was bigger than the apartment we had in Vernon, CT. We had our own bathroom and the kids had theirs, a balcony overlooking a pond where we could feed geese and ducks, a washer and dryer, onsite miniature golf and video game rooms…our bathroom even had the type of toilet I like (yes, Jesus notices those things, too). The Lord is good. When we forget and stop thinking about our dreams, the Lord may continue to think about them and plan for them.

A perfect stranger in the car ahead of us at one of the toll booths we had to drive through paid for our toll.

No one knew we wanted Godly nature videos for our children, but someone gave us a set from Moody Bible Institute.

Someone paid for our children’s tickets at Historic Colonial Williamsburg.

Someone who found out that Chayah needed immunizations paid for them. The doctor we met with didn’t charge us for the appointment.

Someone offered to pay half of the cost of us renting a vehicle (~ $440) for our 32 days of travelling.

We’ve been treated to many meals at people’s homes and in restaurants. And people have accommodated us in their homes for many days.

Our kids did many crafts at the Gardner's house in Maryland

Through His goodness the Lord is actually teaching us to see beyond natural limitations, and trust Him for the things He dreams about doing upon the earth and through our lives. If we fear the Lord and His goodness, He will put us into expectation more than our circumstances and situations do. The goodness of God endures continually (Psalm 52:1). We won’t understand everything, but we can expect the Lord to be good and gracious every day and in every situation. He is both sovereign and good. What is He doing for you right now?

In Christ we live,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Vacation - Having Fun With Jesus

2010-06-30T05:15:00.000+02:00

The Haynes Family is doing well. We are away from our home and mission field of Mozambique, but not away from “missions”.

On June 25, our little Chayah turned 1 year old. One of the reasons the Lord sent us back to the U.S. during this time was to celebrate Chayah’s first birthday with my parents. Jesus values relationships and family. It was exciting to hear my dad’s exclamation as he watched Chayah taking some of her first steps, and also seeing his proud look when she cried for him as he left for work in the afternoon.

Currently we are on a 5 day vacation at Sandy Cove Ministries in Maryland (www.sandycove.org). This is an exciting place full of God’s presence and goodness along with food, games and activities for the whole family. There are scheduled times every day for the kids to do activities with other children in their age group that involve some bible teaching along with just plain fun so the parents can spend time with God alone and each other. Jesus is truly giving us a valuable time just to hang out and indulge ourselves in being with one another. I (Tyren) wouldn’t trade these 5 days for 5 days of experiencing the salvations, healings and other ministry that happens in Mozambique (as wonderful as it is to take part in it)!

Jesus has been showering us with His love and goodness in so many ways. Let me share this short story Amerel told me to illustrate this. Amerel and Isaiah were looking at toys here at Sandy Cove. Another child wanted one, but didn’t have any money. The man selling them said that he wished he could give one away free but he couldn’t. While they were looking at the toys, he asked Amerel and Isaiah where they were from and Amerel told him that she and Isaiah were missionaries in Mozambique. The man said, “I never met missionaries from there before”. While they were telling me the story, the Lord showed me that the man was overjoyed with the fact that Jesus is touching nations, even nations like Mozambique. Then, the man gave our kids their choice of not 1, but 2 free toys. We thank the Lord for His goodness. But, the blessing behind the free toy blessing was seeing the effect that the name and work of Jesus has on people. The man was so moved by what Jesus is doing in a nation he’s not familiar with, that he gave away toys that he couldn’t give away before. Our kids were blessed, but the man did it for Jesus. Isn’t our Lord amazing?

This is just a short blog to let you know how we are doing. We love you. Please continue to remember us in prayer. The Lord is renewing our minds, and opening up new opportunities for us through fresh revelation dawning in our hearts. We’ll continue traveling through the end of July to meet with friends and family on the east coast.

In Christ’s love,

Tyren

Updates and On Our Way to the U.S.

2010-05-16T09:39:00.011+02:00

Prison House
This past Tuesday at the prison, we had the privilege of having another powerful time of ministry through Jesse Gallatly, a missionary at our center, who shared his testimony and ministered to the men at the prison. Jesse spent time in jail in the U.S., but his life has been radically changed. He now walks in the power of the Holy Spirit and love, sends demons running, and is raising up a mighty team of young men to evangelize in the villages. Condela, a Mozambican friend, also shared his testimony and encouraged the young men. Several new inmates came forward to receive Jesus as their Savior.

Visiting the U.S.
Sunday, May 16, we’re flying to Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, to apply for Chayah’s U.S. documentation so we can bring her back to the U.S. with us. We’ll be in Maputo for about 2 weeks before flying to the U.S. We are going to miss our Mozambican friends and family who have become so precious to us. We are also looking forward to the times of ministry, refreshing, blessing and family vacation that awaits us in the U.S. We know the Lord is sending us back for 3 months and will give us an awesome time with friends and family. Here’s a brief look at our schedule the next 3 months:

Schedule
May 16: Leave Lichinga to spend 2 weeks in Maputo, Mozambique to apply for Chayah's U.S. passport and other docs. We'll be staying at the Iris Ministries children’s center.
May 29: Arrive in the U.S.
June 1 - June 26: In Connecticut
June 27 - end of July: Traveling through New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania to visit family friends and vacation.
End of July - August 25: In Connecticut
August 26: Leave for Mozambique

Our new kitchen cabinets and shelves that Andrew, missionary at our center, built

Part of the wall around our house. Iron flowers are on top of the gates, doors and the part in front

Please continue to pray for the Lord’s work here in Mozambique while we are away. Ministry in the hospital, prison, the children’s ministry, ministry to the youth floorball team, and ministry on the streets and villages surrounding the city are going well.

Looking forward to seeing you!

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Dreams of God: Children’s Fun Day in Assumane

2010-05-07T12:15:00.011+02:00

I thought the best way to open up this blog was with beautiful photos of Fun Day in Assumane Village on April 24. “You’re buying 50 sacks just for children to jump in them,” a boy from the market exclaimed while giving me a surprised look like I was wasting money and good sacks. But, the kingdom of God is about changing our perspective to delight in the things Jesus enjoys. With the help of other missionaries, we also bought 1200 bolos and bajeia, 600 bags of chips, rope, markers and individuals purchased other things that were used for the “Fun Stations”. During some parts of the day, we must have had over 400 children participating at one time. We had 8 different “Fun Stations” (games and activities spread out in the soccer field) along with some other activities that spontaneously started. These included bozo buckets, finger puppet crafts, limbo and high jump, jump rope and more.

Before I continue, I have to explain that many children in the villages, including Assumane, are not used to the kind of structure and discipline like you many find in many western elementary schools. Forming and keeping lines and rows, waiting your turn, taking turns, and staying seating while being served are just a few of the many challenges we faced. So, when we tried to form lines to do sack races with 50 sacks, it turned into jump wherever you want and grab a sack from another child when you can (even if the other child is still in the sack). It was so fun!

Although handing out over 500 bolos (fried sweetened donut thing), went surprisingly well, handing out 600 bejeia (patties made of bean flour) right after became so wild and out of control that we had to stop handing them out. But, love endures all things. So, later that day, Victor, Carlos and I went throughout the village and handed out hundreds of bajeia to very happy children and some adults.

Debbie who is a Christian and trained ventriloquist is visiting our center along with her husband Dominic. She organized songs, activities with puppets, a magic trick to demonstrate Jesus’ willingness to forgive our sin, and picture cards to share the gospel. Of course, many children and adults enjoyed this, and many received Christ. It was a beautiful and powerful way to end the day.

Thank you for all of your prayers for the first Assumane Fun Day! I don’t know all that Jesus has in store for us in the future, but I’m already dreaming with God about things to do in other villages to help the hearts of Children experience the reality of the love that Christ has for them in fun and activity filled ways. As you pray, join us in having sweet dreams with Jesus and lots of fun!

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

(We would have updated you sooner but normal internet connections are not working in northern Mozambique. We are connecting now via a satellite at a hotel in Lichinga. Remember: We'll be in the U.S., June 1 - August 25. See you soon!)

Dreams of God: The Prison and FUN DAY

2010-04-20T23:27:00.024+02:00

Dreams of God: The Prison Doors are Opening
Jesus’ work in the prison continues to grow. He’s not only working within the hearts of men within the church in the prison, but also within the hearts of the other believers and non-believers who do not fellowship with us. The past three weeks, I asked different people to come and minister at the prison. First, Victo used a drama to teach a powerful word about humbling ourselves before God. Then the following week, Christian Jung (http://jungworldmissions.blogspot.com/), a missionary at our center from the U.S., brought a mighty word on repentance. The Holy Spirit moved upon hearts as we laid ourselves on the ground before the Lord and asked Him to help us look beyond ourselves and love others (Matthew 25:34-40). Afterwards, our team split up and ministered to prisoners around the inner courtyard. This past Tuesday, we had the privilege of having Dominic Gaccette, visiting our center from California, minister at the prison. He is the founder of the B.A.D.D. Organization which stands for Born Again Delivered Disciples (http://www.thebadd.org). Dominic taught on making a firm decision to pursue God’s purpose and destiny without turning back to one’s old way of life nor giving into a life of sin.

As we started our meeting yesterday (April 20th), for some reason, all the prisoners who didn’t want to join our group were ordered to be locked inside their rooms (with pad locks on the steel doors). Nothing like this ever happened before. Usually, the muslims and other unbelievers sit around the courtyard, listening and eagerly watching. Many of them have begun to ask for prayer and others have surrendered their lives to Jesus Christ. As some people prayed and asked Jesus to help release the prisoners, I went to pour out my heart to ask the guard to unlock the doors and release the prisoners to hear the word of God and receive prayer. Later, as we continued to worship, the doors were unlocked. After Dominic shared his testimony (he spent many years in and out of U.S. prisons and jails), several prisoners (including a few who were let out of their locked rooms) received Christ, and others came for prayer. Hallelujah!

Outside the main prison gate (left to right): Chanito, Victo, Andrew, Dominic, Elias, Jessie

More Dreams of God: Children’s Fun Day in Assumane Village
It’s a reality! This Saturday, April 24, we are going to spend 3 hours of games, food, puppets, music and dancing with, literally, hundreds of children in Assumane Village. As many of you may know, it’s a “dream come true” for me. Missionaries and local Mozambicans are going to join together and have a blast in the presence of God with fun, love, joy and so much more. Pray that Jesus' presence, peace, order, His love through our lives, joy and power will shower everyone during this event.

In Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Top Photo: Tyren and Christian Jung outside prison gate

Updates On the Haynes Family

2010-04-04T14:28:00.021+02:00

H A P P Y E A S T E R
May you rejoice in the love and life with God that our Savior Jesus Christ has freely given us

Coming to the U.S.
We are all going back to visit the U.S. from June thru August 2010! Let us know in advance if you’d like us to share about the Lord’s work here in your church, or share/minister at other events. As it looks now, we’ll spend extended times in CT, NJ and Maryland, and will spend several days on a family vacation in the Chesapeake Bay area.

Family Updates
Tiffany writes: This past year since Chayah’s birth has been very interesting for me. God has brought me through many things and has brought me to the “end of myself” several times. What I mean by this, is that I’ve been brought to the place where I’ve felt that I had nothing within myself to give anymore while going through a certain situation or “struggle”. I had to find out that being satisfied with what God has placed there for me in that situation is enough for me. It’s been an interesting journey and I’m glad that I’ve been able to grow closer to God and my family through it all. On occasion, God has also given me opportunities to share the things He’s been teaching me about Himself and the contentment and satisfaction that is mine when I reach out and accept it.

Tyren writes: As a family, the Lord is continuing to transform us and bring us into greater intimacy with Him, and give us new revelation about life with Him. Our vision is clear, Jesus is everything. As we mentioned in the beginning of the year, 2010 is still a year of fruitfulness – His increase into our ministry. As we are being lavished in His love, faith is arising to trust God, and launch out into new opportunities that the Holy Spirit reveals to us. Sometimes such opportunities can be seen in physical things such as going to Tanzania, building a fence, supporting the building of the children’s ministry center, coming to the U.S. again, etc. Yet, more and more, we are taking notice of the things the Father is working within our hearts, and trusting Him to perform what He shows us.

Elias teaching Isaiah guitar

Pray for us :
Pray that the Lord will continue to stir up our children’s giftings, and give them understanding and vision for their lives and living overseas.

The Lord will provide us with a vehicle to travel in while being in the U.S.

Believe God with us for our own 4x4 vehicle for ministry in the city and the villages of Lichinga, and for going out together as a family. A 4x4 truck is needed for driving on bad roads, mud and through water during rainy season, and for carrying equipment. The estimated cost for a used, low mileage, good quality vehicle is between $13000 - $15,000 U.S.

All for our risen and living King Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

The Priority of His Presence

2010-03-26T22:06:00.007+02:00

Cement Block Wall for the House of God’s Pleasure
I had explained to all the workers that while they are working on our property, they had to honor the presence of the Lord or they wouldn’t be able to continue working. Wednesday, I reminded the boss of the group about the importance of living for the glory of God and abiding in His presence. This Thursday, when the boss of the group, who is also a Christian, arrived at my house, he told me that he let 3 of the workers go. These were the 3 who were doing the actual building of the wall! He told me that they weren’t working hard, and then he found out that they weren’t honoring the Lord like I had talked to them about. So, he paid them, and then fired them.

I was so excited. I didn’t know who would build the wall, but I knew the Lord was filling me with a lot of joy and peace. We honored His presence above all else. Because we chose Jesus, we had everything we needed. Faith filled our hearts to press forward with the work. I was also thrilled that the boss of the group (a Mozambican) chose to live for the Lord, and not give in to the attitude of the workers. Amazingly, the past two days the work has gone extremely well. About 250 feet of the total ~ 480 foot wall is up to half its height.

Pray that the Lord’s work in the men’s lives goes well, the wall is completed quickly and in a way that honors the Lord, and that the Lord continues to work in the boss’s heart and leads him into the purposes He has for him.

Part of our exisiting grass fence on the hill with the cement wall being built around it

Children’s Ministry Center and Children's Ministry
The men are working hard on laying the foundation for the Children’s Ministry Center. Christian Jung, another ministry at our center, is overseeing the building project and is also discipling these men preparing their hearts for the Lord. This past Wednesday, Victo, Carlos and I taught the children using puppets. Afterwards, the Lord gave us a special time with the children, leading them in worshipping the Lord through prayer, blessing them and prophesying over their lives.

We led the children over to their ministry center. Some of them thought it was going to be a big building just for people to live in. Victo helped explain to them that it’s Jesus’ special place for them to have fun, learn about Him and experience His presence; and they won’t have to worry about getting rained on. We all thanked Jesus for the center, and prayed for the workers also. Jesus gave us a beautiful time.

A few weeks ago, the Lord showed me His presence coming down like rain. In the midst of the falling rain (which was actually His presence), children were being brought. He told me, my job is just to receive them. I must receive them because the rain has already begun. It’s the time of the abundance of rain. I believe that if we prepare for the rain, we’ll see the great harvest of children the Lord intends on giving to us. No one knows exactly what it will look like. But, just imagine, a bunch of children who have been so loved by Jesus, that they flow in the Holy Spirit (carried about by the river of living water), and carry the Father’s heart wherever the Spirit desires. It’s one thing to have a vision, but it’s another thing to trust God until we actually experience the vision (what the Lord sees and is desiring for our lives).

Let’s pray together, and worship the Lord together, as we believe Him and trust Him for the harvest of children He longs to bring to Himself.

Children and others standing in the plot for the Children's Ministry Center

All for the joy of living in His love,

Tyren and Tiffany

Glory in the Prison and Ministry

2010-03-19T21:43:00.009+02:00

The Glory in the Prison
In the previous blog I shared about the prison. But something special happened during last week’s prison ministry, and I just have to share it with you. We experience His presence in the prison, but on this day, the Lord Himself showed up. It wasn’t just His presence. God Himself was with us. The glory covered us. I wish I had words to describe it. You might be wondering about what happened. I delayed teaching when my time came – it was not time for such things (2 Chronicles 5:14). Instead everyone worshipped Him. He drew our hearts into the privilege of being awed by who He is. If He’s not enough for us, nothing will ever satisfy us. I sat down in awe, seeing that this was God’s time and His ministry. I felt like God Himself was ministering to us, and that we were there just to serve Him (and minister) only if He called upon us that very moment to do so. It was a very holy time.

Pray that the Lord renews the minds of the believers behind bars to believe and walk in their inheritance in Christ; and that revival would come to the prison.

Cement Block Wall
At our center, a project can never just be about doing something. It’s about the Lord doing His work (Psalm 127:1) of building lives, temples for the Lord. The Lord has me teaching the boss of the group mainly about His glory. The boss (a Christian), thought that he came here just to build a wall, but the Lord brought him here for a completely different purpose. Jesus has a wonderful surprise for him. I’m eager to see what it is myself. On March 17, the workers began building the wall. Most of the wall will be about 7 feet tall.

Night Street Evangelism
A group of the missionaries at our center, including three visitors to our center, went out to evangelize the central market area at night. This was our first night street evangelism. Through the Holy Spirit, we spoke life and love into people’s lives. Victo led a man to the Lord while the man’s friends around him were laughing. Another heard us speaking about Jesus, and asked us to pray about his eye problems. A word of knowledge and prophecy was given to a Christian young man who then prayed to surrender his way to the Lord and ask Jesus to give him direction for the purpose of his life. Jesus used us to do many wonderful things, and we thank Him for the privilege of serving Him.

Pray that the people of Lichinga continue to appreciate the word of the Lord, and keep their hearts open to the gospel. Also pray that the Lord’s presence would continue to transform the city and awaken hearts to His plan, way and destiny for Lichinga.

Grace for grace,

Tyren and Tiffany

The Prison

2010-03-07T18:48:00.020+02:00

We entered through the steel gates into the prison courtyard. Our phones were turned off and left with the armed guard. A short walk brings us to the back of the prison, where our backpacks are briefly checked by another guard. Then, the steel door is unlocked and we are allowed to enter the small inner courtyard which contains only a few small rooms where 300+ men sleep. The guards do not accompany us inside. The door is locked behind us from the outside. It’s just my ministry team, the prisoners and Jesus – a perfect setting.

While an area is being cleared for us to worship and teach, we have time to greet the many muslim and other prisoners. One young man had malaria and was still suffering from pain in his shoulders and other parts of his body. We prayed for him and the pain began to go away. The young man ended up giving his life to Christ.

The believers in the prison are also part of our ministry team. I told them it’s very easy for them to visit other prisoners since they themselves live in the prison. They are the lights of the prison and the main means through which the Lord will transform lives. I’ve been encouraging them to ask the Holy Spirit to give them one person to minister to that they don’t know, or a person they know doesn’t like them. One prisoner called up 3 new people he had ministered to who had received Jesus.

The Holy Spirit gave us an impromptu drama to help the men understand their liberty in Christ and be renewed in their minds. One prisoner played satan and another played a Christian with little faith and knowledge of who they are in Christ. The drama caught the attention of all the men sitting in the courtyard as they watched satan’s tactic to make the Christian (or anyone) choose other ways to live life outside of Jesus’ will.

Every week is a little different. Toward the end of our visit, the Holy Spirit directed us to have the men form two lines facing one another. The believers prayed for one another, declaring the word of God over one another’s lives. It was a beautiful time.

Pray for the prison that the believers would be a light and carry God’s fire and love within the prison, and the Lord would open up new avenues of ministry within the prison.

Other updates:

Foundation being dug for brick wall around our house

Foundation dug for children's ministry center

For His glory and kingdom,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Blog Issues

2010-03-06T20:50:00.001+02:00

Thank you to everyone that has been informing us about the blog issues. We don't know what is causing these issues. If you go to our blog site, http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com, the blog appears fine. But, for some reason the emails you received contained old information.

So, we'd like to say that another baby is not on the way.

We will try to send out a new blog tomorrow. Hopefully, it's sent correctly.

Thank you for your understanding and concern,

Tyren and Tiffany

Ministry and Visiting U.S.A.

2010-03-03T11:31:00.000+02:00

Hospital Ministry
Tania, Melissa and Rachel, missionaries at our center, are being involved in our weekly hospital ministry led by Victo. Being full of the Spirit and with a simple hug, we’ve watched emotional healing take place as one of the female missionaries hug a local Mozambican woman. Every week we pray for healing and salvations. At times, the Lord has given Tania a word of knowledge concerning sickness, or another a prophetic word concerning a person’s life and what the Lord desires to do with them. Even more enjoyable, is leaving a room full of patients and seeing the Lord restore joy and hope in the hearts of men and women (sometimes without being able to speak their language, Yao language).

Pray for more of God’s love and power within the Lichinga Hospital, that the Lord enlightens the darkness, and breaks the imprisonment of fear, sickness and spiritual blindness in the hearts of many that we encounter. Pray that the Christian staff realize their full potential in Christ, and begin to be used by God to demonstrate His kingdom on a greater level.

U.S.A. 2010
Jesus is wonderful. Please pray for us as we make plans to visit the U.S. this year, June – August. On the way, we’ll be spending a few weeks in Maputo to apply for Chayah’s passport, U.S. birth certificate and social security. Pray that the Lord will open doors to share and minister in churches concerning His kingdom and love, and the wonderful things He is doing in Mozambique. If you would like us to share at your church or for other events, please contact us early (email us) and let us know.

The Home Front
If true revival begins in the heart of the individual, then one’s family must be among the first to experience it. We thank God for drawing our hearts into deeper worship (as a family), and for being challenged by the Holy Spirit, ever so gently, to continually step deeper into the greater freedom and transforming power of love. The more we choose to love, the more we laugh at things that we used to think were problems that needed to directly and immediately be dealt with. (For instance, our anointed children decided to fill up a little container with spit, and use it as “oil” to oil the chains on their little toy motorcycles on our couch!) Of course we told them that it wasn’t a wise thing to do, but it was quite funny.

On 2/25, our beloved little Chayah turned 8 months. She can sit up by herself, but hasn’t quite stepped into crawling. She does find a way to pull herself off of her cushioned mat onto the cement floor to slap it with her hands (she likes drumming), or sneak an occasional lick if we don’t catch her.

We love you and hope to see you in June.

With love and joy,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

2010 - Fruitfulness is the Lord’s Increase

2010-02-18T22:43:00.000+02:00

We would like to share with all of you, what we are focusing on and what we are praying about this year. One of the main things the Lord is bringing about in 2010 is FRUITFULNESS, His increase into our ministry. His way is simple, more love for more ministry. So, we’ll stay focused on the love that God has for us. Over time, we’ve been praying concerning things on His heart (2 Chronicles 7:14, 1 John 5:14-15), and cried out to Him to help us dream His dreams. This year, we’ve already started to see some of these things, and we are in expectation for more. The items below will give you an idea of what our hearts are focusing on. Dream with us, dream big (His love is that wonderful), because we are waking up to the expectations of God for our lives.

Children’s Ministry Center
Several missionaries from our center are working together to build a children’s ministry center in the village of Assumane. This will enable us to have a suitable, intimate place to minister to the village children, lavish them in the love of God and in the knowledge of Christ, and prepare them for the purposes and promises of God for their lives, generation and nation. Pray with us as we trust God for the vision, wisdom and finances to complete this project. A drawing of the proposed building is below.

Releasing the Fire
Releasing Harvesters into the Harvest – the Lord’s given us a greater desire and burden to take what we have and pour it into others to release them into the harvest and prepare people to enter the destiny of God for their lives through discipleships, intercession, personal ministry, etc.

Hospital Ministry
Friend and local Mozambican missionary, Victo, is heading up the weekly hospital ministry to love people, pray for the sick, encourage the staff and share the gospel.

Prison Ministry
Weekly services and ministry times in the prison, including projects and supporting prison hosted activities. Jesus is opening the prison doors to draw people to Himself and into the life He has for them both inside and outside the prison.

City of Lichinga
Several times during the week, Tyren is in the city, in the markets, on the streets, and in the stores preaching the gospel and demonstrating the kingdom of God in the power of His love to adults and children, the poor and disadvantaged, and people in business, sports, education and government. The Lord is saving, healing, encouraging and drawing people into the fulfillment of their life with Christ.

The Harvest of Children
Whether in the city or in the surrounding villages of Sanjala, Namacula, Utumuile or Assumane our hearts burn with a passion to see children come to Jesus and do whatever He wants them to do.

Children in Utumuile Village

Thank you so much for your prayers and your support as you continually lift us up and work alongside of us to call a people to be holy unto the Lord and be carriers of His heart.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Tanzania - Testimonies of God's Work in Tanzania

2010-01-31T14:40:00.000+02:00

From the first day I arrived in Mwanza, the Lord gave me peace to trust in Him for everything, and serve others. Usually, I had no idea what I would have to pay for and the cost of things until the day arrived. I paid for my own lodging every day. Then for the 10 days we traveled, I had to rent an 8 seater-truck and driver, pay for gas and even some maintenance of the vehicle, pay daily expenses and lodging for our ministry team of 5, buy food for lots of people and leave provisions with churches. I was astounded by the Lord’s provision, and praise Him for the opportunity to bless very many people with the natural provisions they needed (in some cases, just to live). Thank you very much for your amazing prayers and timely support (though no one knew what I needed) this past month. God used you to boldly bring His love and kingdom to a people who were in physical need and in great expectation of a move of God. The Lord was greatly exalted in more ways than I could describe in a blog. Hallelujah!

There are many testimonies I would like to share with you, but to keep things short, I selected testimonies from some of the places we ministered in to give you an overall view of Holy Spirit’s outpouring and work at the Iris churches in Tanzania. These testimonies are just the first fruits of the revival the Lord started.

Village of Kimbumba in Matofali-Buselesele (Pastor Benedictos’ church)
As soon as we arrived in the village of Kimbumba, the Lord showed me that the village was so ripe, it was like fruit on a tree that would fall if you barely touched it with the palm of your hand (that is, the Lord prepared the people’s hearts to receive Jesus when they would hear about Him). All they needed was the right invitation. So, the next two days, I taught the pastor and his church how to harvest the village, by living in the love that God has for us. Besides the instantaneous healings and the move of God in the church, Jesus did amazing things all around the village, even in the brothel where we had to sleep for 3 nights (this was the only place in the village for us to stay in, but it was of the Lord).

Less than two hours after arriving in the village, a group of children surrendered their lives to Jesus. When we first arrived, many of them were being naughty, trying to do things to our rented car. Immediately after they gave their lives to Jesus they stopped, and we didn’t have any problem with them for the next two days. They went around singing the worship songs we taught them. A few hours later, a prostitute received Jesus. I saw the glory of the Lord come upon her like a bright beam of light. Instantly, a painful tumor was removed (she went into the restroom to check). The woman said that after she received her pay at the end of the month (pay day) she’d stop prostituting. Shortly after, the other prostitute recommitted her life to Jesus. She didn’t waste any time, but dressed with dignity in a pretty purple satin dress, told the boss she was quitting and asked for her pay, and then left for her village far away (we actually drove her part of the way back). Another woman was sick but refused to throw away her witchcraft. Because of Jesus’ love, He instantly healed her anyway. I watched her whole countenance change as she seriously began thinking about rededicating her life to Jesus. Later in the evening, after we evangelized two men came seeking Apollo at the brothel. They said, “We watched you all evangelizing. We need to know about Jesus”. Our groups didn’t preach to these men; they only heard we were telling people about Jesus. That night, they surrendered their lives to the Lord.

Geta – Mkome Village
Pastor Zecharias pastors a growing church in Mkome, right on Lake Victoria. God did an amazing thing at this church. I’ll have to explain it like this…Pastor Zecharias was being insulted by other people and pastors because of the lack of money to support his church and the other Iris churches he oversees. The (Iris) pastors encouraged him to continue with Iris. For some reason, many people who had left the church came back during the first teaching session I held (this was actually a sign from the Lord). I taught twice on Saturday. Saturday morning, the Holy Spirit gave me a new message about the Father’s heart. Unknown to me, that word so deeply touched people’s hearts that the same day they told people all over the place that they needed to hear this message (I still don’t know how they spread the word so far in such a short time). The very next day, Sunday afternoon, pastors began to show up at Pastor Zecharias’ house unannounced with their church members. Others called in advance to let him know they were coming. These pastors lived far away, and hired transport to bring them to Pastor Zecharias’ church. They all told Pastor Zecharias that people from his church were telling everyone that they needed to hear this word about the Father’s heart. These pastors canceled their Sunday night services and closed their churches. I was amazed because they didn’t come because of all the healings on Saturday, or because of the outpouring that had people weeping, wailing, falling face down in the dirt, and crying out to God as they responded to His lavishing love. They came for the word that they heard would change their lives. Surprisingly, these pastors brought a lot of money and offered it to the church. I watched as many pastors and hundreds of people came and were brought together in unity, at a pastor’s church who was presently being insulted and talked about by many people in the area. Revival had come to Mkome, and the most important thing became the things in the heart of God.

Mwanza
Pastor Deus oversees the 55 Iris churches in Tanzania, but he mainly ministers at the “mother” church in Mwanza. The glory and the Holy Spirit’s fire (love) came upon this church too, and individual members of the church were released into their divine destiny. But, I want to share with you something that was occurring in the church well before I arrived there. The way the members of this church sacrificially offered their lives for one another touched my heart very deeply. A blind man took the money he begged for on the streets (in Kenya because their money is worth more than Tanzania’s), and gave it to Pastor Deus to go on a ministry trip. A woman, who has her own family, offered to start and run the church’s school for no pay (she offered herself simply because she found out Pastor Deus wanted to start a school). Then there are others who feed and provide things for one another, and others who move into another’s home to take care of them. It was truly amazing to see the love they have for one another and the way they sacrifice their lives for one another.

Pray that the churches in Tanzania will continue to receive God’s love for them, and continue to want Him more and submit to everything He desires.

To God be the glory,

Tyren and Tiffany

Photos: Pastor Deus, his wife, Elizabeth, and Apolo (worship leader) boarding the ferry on Lake Victoria
- Stuck in the mud with 9 people in the car and 5 huge bags of charcoal on top
- Some of the children that received Jesus in Kimbumba
- Woman being healed of tumor
- Our nice, little fire tunnel (prayer tunnel) before the Holy Spirit blasted the whole church (people were falling everywhere)

Tanzania - Testimonies of Pastor Oloise and Pastor Benedictos

2010-01-30T18:39:00.000+02:00

Pastor Oloise in Chatu region
Pastor Oloise is over the 5 Iris churches in the region of Chatu. He and his wife have 6 children. The church he pastors cares for about 25 orphans.

Like other Iris pastors, Pastor Oloise went where the Lord sent him even without knowing how and where his family would live. One day Pastor Oloise prayed for a woman who was near death. The Lord miraculously restored the woman to life. She was so grateful that she offered the pastor a place to rent on her property for $18.75 U.S. a month. The house has two small bedrooms and a sitting area. This was a blessing, since the house provided the pastor and his family with a place to live in the area the Lord sent him. But, till this day, the pastor doesn’t have enough money to pay for the monthly rent. The Lord’s favor allows him to stay.

The pastor and his wife began a church that grew very quickly. Then, for some reason, the owner of the land chased people off the property, and refused to allow anyone to meet in the building. When anyone came, he told them that it wasn’t a church anymore. Confusion arose and many people left the church. At the same time, the pastor lost his garden (the means to provide food for his family) which was on the same property. Today, he rents a poorly constructed mud house for church meetings for about $5.25 a month. Some people help him with the church’s rent because he’s unable to pay for it. The church is full of God’s love. In the midst of having so little, the pastor continues to trust in the Lord for what He called him to do, and thanks the Lord for the opportunity he has to serve Him.

When we arrived in Chatu the pastor didn’t have any food for his family, for the visiting pastors, nor for us. I found out that two of the pastors traveled for 2 days by bicycle taxi just to reach the seminar we were holding at the church. I noticed that one of the pastors wore the same clothes for the 3 days we were there. The Lord provided, and I was able to provide food for people to eat during and after the seminar.

The Lord gave me a word for Pastor Oloise. Now, he is walking through a time where he is testifying of God’s love for him while living without many basic things his family needs. One day, he will have his own house and a lot of property. He will have to have servants tending to his house and property because he will have so much, and because the Lord wants to release him to travel around to other areas to teach people about His goodness and love.

Pastor Benedictos Sipiriani of the village of Kimbumba in Matofali-Buselesele
Pastor Benedictos was saved in 1987. He gave his life to Jesus after hearing someone preach the gospel. Formerly he was a drunkard, did drugs and went to prostitutes. He had a garden to support his family, and if possible, to sell vegetables to others. After fasting for 1 week in 1990, the Lord spoke to him in a vision appointing him to be a pastor. He began his work in Kilobelo.

He and his wife began to go house to house, preaching the gospel and praying for the sick. This is how the church started. The Lord healed a crazy person, and also delivered another from demons. People who made home-made alcohol came against him saying that he came to their village to destroy their business. These men had him thrown into jail. The church helped the pastor by writing a letter and talking to the people in the village. After 7 days, he was set free. He continued ministering in the same place for some time. He didn’t have shoes or a good house, and only had 1 shirt and 2 pairs of pants. He lived in a small grass hut with his wife and 5 children. One day, their grass hut was burned down, and they lost everything. The church helped him rebuild his house, and was able to provide him and his wife with 1 change of clothes. His children were naked and remained at home. People began to insult and mock him. “You call yourself a pastor. If you were a pastor the Lord would take care of you. But, you are poor and your children are naked,” they said. Pastor Benedictos felt a lot of pain in his heart, but he continued in the Lord’s work.

When the Lord sent Pastor Benedictos to Kimbumba village in 1997, he went without having a house or anything. They all walked by foot. They had no money, so Pastor Benedictos would ask people to let him dig in their gardens for a little pay. Today, he continues to ask people to let him work in their gardens. He uses the money to help support his family. His wife also works in their own garden to help support them. He lives out in the “bush”, because he cannot afford to live close by the church in the central area of the village. To visit his churches, he tries to borrow someone’s bicycle. Some of the churches take 2 – 4 hours to reach by bicycle on dirt paths. In the village where pastor Benedictus lives we witnessed a powerful move of God in the community. I’ll share testimonies about this in the next blog.

With love in Jesus Name,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Photos: Church at Chatu (along with vistors and visiting pastors)
- Pastors, elders and Director of Iris while at the church at Chatu (left to right: Pastor Oloise's wife, Pastor Oloise, Elizabeth (Pastor Deus' wife), Pastor Deus (Director of Iris Tanzani)
- At Pastor Benedictos' house (left to right: Pastor Benedictos' wife, Pastor Benedictos, Elizabeth, Apolo (worship leader who traveled with us to all the villages), Pastor Oloise, Pastor Deus, some of P. Benedictos' children)
- Worshipping in Pastor Benedictos' church of mud brick and grass

Tanzania - Pastor Deus Elias' Testimony

2010-01-28T21:14:00.000+02:00

Pastor Deus Elias used to work in the gold mines in Tanzania. He was married to his wife Elizabeth, and he had a big house and money. Then, the Lord called them out from the gold mines to preach the gospel. They sold everything and began their new work for the Lord. As they continued, they soon had no money, and very little possessions. His wife only had two pieces of cloth to wear, one to wrap around the top of her body, and the second to wrap around the rest of her body. Between the two of them, the only footwear they had was a pair of house slippers. He let his wife wear them.

His wife became pregnant, but they couldn’t afford to go to the hospital. They delivered the baby themselves. The baby was born, but later died. Having no other way to bury their first child, Pastor Deus’ wife took one of the two cloths she used for clothes, wrapped the baby in it, and then they buried their baby. She used the one remaining cloth to wear during the day as clothes and at night to cover herself. (While Pastor Deus was telling me this, he said that sometimes in ministry we can lose our way and our purpose. “When I left the gold mines, things were very bad. But, all I had was the love of God, and that was everything to me. I was happy and started ministry. Today, I am remembering that that is what ministry is all about – the love of God.”

Pastor Deus heard about an area full of witchcraft. Pastors were running away from this area. He prayed and asked the Lord to send him there. The Lord granted his request, and he and his wife left for the village without any money. They found a house that no one wanted to rent because the witches used it for their conferences. The owner told them, whoever entered the house to live, died within 2 – 3 days, or went crazy within a week. Since Pastor Deus had no money for rent, the owner told him that he could pay for rent with his life (the owner figured that Pastor Deus would die like most others, so there would be no need for him to pay rent). In a short time, 60 people were saved. People burnt their witchcraft and turned to the Lord. Pastor Deus suffered two serious illnesses because of the demonic attacks initiated by the witches. Both times, he fasted without food and water (the first time for three days, the second time for 7 days) and afterwards the Lord healed him completely. After the second healing, one of the witches came to Pastor Deus saying that he must be using a stronger power (than what they were using) from evil spirits because whatever they tried to do to him was not working. They were surprised to see him perfectly well. He told him that he didn’t have demons. He is a servant of God, and that they needed to depend on Jesus. The church in that area continued to prosper. Today it’s a big church, and is going strong.

Later they moved to Mwanza with their 3 children. They lived in a very small room without windows, it only had a doorway. They didn’t have anything, so he started selling ties for food and to support his ministry. One day their 3 year old daughter, Neema, died. Pastor Deus said that he knew the Lord called them into ministry, and that this wasn’t God’s plan for his daughter. “If you want to bury her, you can come down and bury her yourself,” he told the Lord, “I don’t have any money. I’m not going to bury her.” For three days, he and his wife, Elizabeth, fasted. They didn’t eat, drink or sleep for 3 days. At times they held their daughter underneath her arms and walked around the house proclaiming that she was alive and walking (although in reality she was dead). On the third day, suddenly their daughter rose from the dead and was completely well. There was nothing wrong with her whatsoever. Their daughter told them that she saw Jesus smiling at her. Jesus came and picked her up and began to carry her. Today, Neema is 13 years old. I met her while in Mwanza. She loves the Lord and worships Him with her whole heart.

Though faced with many hardships, Pastor Deus and his wife never turned away from what the Lord was calling them to do. Because they had no money, he and his wife delivered 3 out of their 6 children themselves. One was delivered by his wife’s sister and the last 2 were able to be born in the hospital. During one of the hospital births, his wife had a C-section. She started to have a very painful infection, but couldn’t return to the hospital. She lay in the bed in great pain, unable to move or talk. People fearing the worst, sent for Pastor Deus, who was in the mountains fasting; but he refused to come back to the house because there was nothing he could do for her. He decided to continue to fast before the Lord for her healing. Suddenly, back in the house a bright light appeared. Elizabeth thought it was a robber, but had no strength to cry out for help. Instead, an angel came out of the light saying, “Do not be afraid. I’ve come to heal you. He rubbed something over her belly (like the hand tool used for ultrasounds), and said, “Now you are healed.” He then left. She wanted to test her body to see if she was healed. She immediately went down the hill to carry up a bucket of water. Then, she took all the clothes in their house outside and started washing them by hand. She found she was completely healed, and hasn’t had a problem since.

Today, Pastor Deus lives in his own small house. The house has two bedrooms. He and his wife sleep in one bedroom. In the other bedroom are his own 6 children, 3 orphans, and 1 widow and her baby (there were only a few beds in the room). He and one of his young sons made the mud bricks themselves by hand. He can’t afford electricity or city water. His family, along with many others in the community, buy water by the bucket and carry it back up the rocky hill. The water is used to drink, cook with, wash clothes, and for the bathroom. Such things like toilet paper (49 cents per roll), cookies (less than $1), juice and toys are too expensive and aren’t purchased. Tanzania is much different than the U.S. and many people struggle to find any kind of work or enough food to eat. Pastor Deus sells dirt from a termite hill to people who make bricks. He uses this little money to help buy food for his family and continue ministry in the churches. At times, his wife also works early in the morning and late at night, sewing clothes and selling them to help buy food for their family. Even so, they don’t always have enough food to eat 3 times a day. Many times, the children wake up and go to school from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. without breakfast or lunch. When they come home, they carry water up the rocky hill to their house, and do other chores. If dinner is available they will eat, but nothing like what many of us are used to in America. Then, the next day, they repeat the same routine. I watched his children, who were full of joy, help around the house, and serve the Lord in and outside the church (even the little ones around 5 years old). They are learning from their parents, that Jesus’ love is everything, and He is worth living for no matter what - even when one has very little or nothing.

Pastor Deus was commissioned to start Iris Ministries in Tanzania in 2000. Today, Iris Ministries has 55 churches throughout Tanzania. He has founded some churches himself, and other churches joined Iris as the Lord directed them. He and his wife choose to depend on the Lord. They love Jesus, and desire Him at all and any cost. He often told me and the other pastors, “We don’t have a choice. We must do whatever the Lord wants.” He and his wife remind me of a passage concerning the Apostle Paul’s ministry, “…as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way; in great endurance, in troubles, hardships and distresses; …in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity;…in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love;…known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on;...sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” (2 Corinthians 6:4-10, NIV).

He and his wife, Elizabeth, asked for prayer that God would continue to provide the means for them to take care of their family, to continue ministry, and travel to the churches to help support them. Their heart is to continue to bring the gospel to areas of Tanzania where few or no people know Jesus.

Photos: Pastor Deus and wife, Elizabeth, with their 8 children (1 baby from widow). (missing widow, newest orphan)
- Their 8 children (missing: newest orphan)
- Pastor Deus' uncompleted house
- The ant hill and the bricks people make from the dirt

Revival: The Harvest in Tanzania

2010-01-26T14:29:00.000+02:00

My time in Tanzania went extremely well. The Lord sent me to teach the people about revival – the very thing for which the churches were crying out. In every place we visited, revival broke out in the churches, and even in the surrounding communities. The Lord was getting what His heart desires – more of us – and this is what revival is all about, life in the intimate relationship the Lord longs to have with us. Because of His goodness, there were miracles, healings, salvations, signs and wonders present all during the time I was there in Tanzania.

I will be creating blogs to share my testimonies about my journey in Tanzania, in the 2nd largest city of Mwanza, and in villages/towns along Lake Victoria. I also have the privilege of sharing personal testimonies of pastors, as well as the work that God did in the places we visited. I met and heard these pastors firsthand and, in some cases, saw their laid-down lives for Jesus. As I watched these men and their wives, they reminded me of the “heroes” of the faith mentioned in Hebrews 11. I will be sharing testimonies of pastors who had choices not to follow Jesus (or to quit the ministry), but instead, clearly knowing what lay ahead, chose to follow Jesus into physical suffering, persecution, mistreatment, sleeplessness, homelessness, frequent hunger, nakedness (literally), and even death. At the same time they’ve witnessed extraordinary healings, experienced depths of the favor, goodness and power of God, and knew what it’s like to raise the dead. The love that Jesus has for them became their sole sufficiency. The Lord told me that this was not mere suffering, but they were suffering for His name’s sake. The Lord chose them and was giving them the privilege of laying down their lives to receive His testimony for their nation. Jesus is giving them an opportunity to live lives that show that He is everything, and He alone is worth seeking and loving above all else. Through their lives, the nation can plainly see who Jesus is and that He is the real reason for living. This is not my opinion, or “hopeful outlook” of their situation. This is the word the Lord gave me to give to these men. They were greatly encouraged by the word, and in some cases this caused them to remember the reason they were called by Jesus. Their lives are becoming a foundation on which the Lord is using to change their communities today. By faith they are receiving a good testimony (His testimony)…and are not willing to accept deliverance (Hebrews 11:2,35), which would cause them to put aside the testimony of the one they love – the whole reason why they live.

In the coming days, I will be sharing with you the testimonies of these pastors and their wives. I seldom hear of such testimonies in America, and believe they will greatly encourage you. To honor these men, please do not reprint, in any form, the personal testimonies of these men without prior consent of Iris Ministries. I am printing their testimonies with their permission.

Thank you for all of your prayers and support for our ministry to the Iris Churches in Tanzania. They continually asked me to remember to pray for them. They desperately need our support.

Because of His unending love for you and for us,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Photos: Pastor Deus Elias, Director of Iris Ministries - Tanzania
Wild monkies running around people's homes
Dirt (literally) rolled up, ready to sell and eat. This is a big business for some people! Pastors discourage this practice.

2010-01-17T07:27:00.000+02:00

Tanzania
Tyren’s been in Tanzania now for 2 full weeks and I’ve finally been able to sit down and update the blog! God is doing great things in Tanzania! Tyren started his trip ministering in the mother church in Mwanza holding a few seminars a day for 3 days for those who were hungry for revival in their hearts. They were taught the importance of loving and worshipping God and about the love of God. God touched many lives, including Tyren’s and they broke out crying, laughing, waving cloths and dancing as the Presence of God came over them. Tyren was blessed by the people’s testimonies of sacrificial love to serve God. He and a small ministry team from Mwanza left that first Saturday for Shato.
In Shato, Tyren met some new challenges as he experienced the heart of God in the people there. He was able to minister to those who had lost their first love through seemingly overwhelming situations. As we were home praying, God used Amerel to give a word to refresh one of the pastor’s there and his family. As Tyren shared the word with him, God was able to reveal how He was going to use this pastor to refresh and teach others who have lost their vision because of seemingly hopeless situations.
In another village in Shato, Pastor Deus and his wife led a woman to Jesus, then prayed for her and God removed a tumor! She went to the bathroom to confirm the healing and the tumor was completely gone! Tyren experienced his own healing in Shato as he began vomiting and having diarrhea one night. Having had no communication with him that night, I began to pray with the kids that night for protection over everything he eats and drinks. The following morning he asked me to pray for him and decided that he must teach the people, even though he couldn’t stay away from the bathroom. We all prayed for him here and the next time I heard from him, he said that the Lord had completely healed him after his first teaching that morning! Praise God! He released the church to preach, love and heal the sick in the village the next day and two men, who had seen them earlier in the village evangelizing, came to them and said they wanted to receive Jesus! Hallelujah!
They left Shato Friday for Geta where God is continuing to do new and great things in the lives of His people there. Tyren and the ministry team will be leaving Geta to return to Mwanza Monday morning and he will be back in Lichinga Thursday.

Earthquake!
I couldn’t end the blog without sharing that we experienced an earthquake here in Lichinga shortly after 1:15 a.m. in the middle of the night Tuesday (actually, Wednesday morning) that left all of us shaking in our beds! I was actually already woke and thought I heard the sound of rolling thunder in the distance; but as it came closer, the sound got louder and then the house began to shake. It felt as if a big wave was passing underneath the bed from the foot to the head and then continuing underneath the house. I could still hear and feel the house trembling for at least 1 full minute after the earthquake had passed. The shaking woke up Chayah, but my other two sleepyheads never knew what hit them until I told them in the morning! We are all safe and sound and the house is still standing! The only noticeable effect of the earthquake is that it seems to have forced dirt up through the underground filter in our borehole. Today I will be emptying out the tank completely and refilling it until the water runs clear again.

Thank you to all of you who have been praying for us!

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

2010-01-02T10:08:00.000+02:00

Today, I, Tyren am off to Tanzania. Many people here have been praying, and giving me words of knowledge and prophecy about the trip. I am excited about all that the Lord has planned. If possible, I will try to contact Tiffany while I am in Tanzania, so that she can update the blog.

As of today, I only know that the first week will be spent in Mwanza. The Pastor told me that everything is taken care of. When the Pastor and I travel around to visit some of the churches, we’ll be staying in village guest houses. I don’t know what these will look like, but I did bring plenty of bug spray to protect my bedding while I sleep (smile). I was told that there is no public transport to these churches, and some are difficult to reach (because of roads). We’ll trust God to rent a car in Mwanza to reach these churches.

Please remember to continue to pray for the trip and the conferences that the Pastor and I will hold at the mother church in Mwanza, and the other churches in the districts. The Lord gave me a specific word for the churches, but someone prayed for me and told me to be ready for the words the Lord will give me for the specific moment. Here are a few of the things people have been praying and declaring over this trip: fire spreading across Mwanza, people less likely to be impacted will be impacted by the word, fresh rivers springing up in people’s hearts, people having a new start and experience that they never had before, boldness and courage…and there were many more things spoken and revealed as people prayed for me. Another person said that the Lord showed them a lion that was coming against me, but that it was fleeing. Prayer is a wonderful gift God gives us to protect ourselves as we advance His purposes on the earth.

Happy New Year to all of you. We bless you and may this year bring exciting new opportunities for us all, and open doors to experience the promises of His heart like never before.

Love,

Tiffany and Tyren Haynes

Celebrating Christmas

2009-12-24T22:36:00.000+02:00

God’s Presence within the Prison Chambers
The presence of the Lord continues to lead the way in transforming the hearts of men in the prison. I love meeting with the men who are saved, but my heart breaks for the few hundred men, many who are muslim, who sit against the wall and with hunger watch the Lord Jesus touch lives. Two weeks ago the Spirit of the Lord moved mightily during our meeting, many muslims and other unbelievers lifted up their hands to receive prayer to know the truth about Jesus Christ, and experience more of God’s love and peace in their lives. Last week, after another wonderful time in our meetings, the Lord instantly healed 4 men of sickness and pains. Hallelujah! Dec. 23, the prison celebrated Christmas. With the help of an individual from the U.S., we were able to bless each of the 34 men within the prison church with a tube of toothpaste, a toothbrush, and bath soap. Because of God’s love, we also purchased 2 buckets of dried, salted usipa (minnows) for all the 300+ men in the prison to eat. Praise God!

Joy In Assumane Village
This past Sunday, the Iris Ministries church in Assumane village celebrated Christmas with a chicken, rice and soda feast for everyone. Most people in the villages don’t get to have chicken and soda often. The children were given “punch balloons” as gifts. Even better than the feast, was the fact that many missionaries and local Mozambicans worked well together to make the event a successful one.

Christmas Eve at our Iris Center in Lichinga
All of us missionaries got together at our center to exchange gifts, pray for one another, worship and enjoy food as we hung out and spent time with one another. We had a wonderful time together celebrating the birth of Christ. Currently there are 27 missionaries at our center which includes the 11 children and the newest member, Zoe, the daughter and first child of Jessie and Tanya Gellatly, who was born December 23.

Thank you for praying for the people of Mozambique, and helping us to reveal the love of God in Christ Jesus to them. We pray that the Lord would exalt Himself in your midst this Christmas and Holiday Season! Merry Christmas, and may the Lord bring more and more joy into our lives because of all that He has done for us.

We praise the Father for the precious gift of His Son, Jesus Christ,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Photos: gifts for prisoners, children waiting for the Christmas feast, Chayah (1 day before turning 6 months)

Open Door To The Nations - Tanzania

2009-12-13T18:32:00.000+02:00

When we first arrived in Lichinga, we received a prophetic word about ministering in other nations while living in Mozambique. Recently, part of that prophecy has come to pass. The Lord is sending Tyren to northern Tanzania for a few weeks in January to minister to the Iris churches. The Lord showed us in a very special way that the time had come for Tyren to visit Tanzania. Briefly, we want to share that with you to help you understand God’s heart for Tanzania, and the importance of this upcoming trip.

Tiffany and I had been praying for the nation of Tanzania for months. Then, for two days, I (Tyren) kept having the same vision of a man crying out to the Lord and the Lord was responding to him. I knew this was an Iris pastor somewhere in Tanzania. I didn’t share any of this with Tiffany. One morning while Tiffany and I were praying, Tiffany gave me a prophetic word, along with Acts 16:9-10 (in this scripture, Paul received a vision of a man calling him to come to Macedonia to preach the gospel). I then told my wife about the vision the Lord was giving me (the Lord had told me what the pastor was crying out for and what His response would be). We both knew the Lord had opened the door for me to go to Tanzania. I emailed the Iris Ministry Pastor in Tanzania to request to come and serve in any way he would like me to. When the Iris Ministry Pastor, Deus Elias, emailed us back, he explained what the church has been crying out and praying for. It was the exact thing the Lord had showed me in the vision (and I hadn’t shared those details with the pastor in my email). We know that the Lord is sending me with a specific word for the Iris churches in Tanzania. The Lord specifically told me, “They are crying out to Me, so I am sending you”.

January 3rd-20th, 2010, Tyren will be in and around Mwanza, Tanzania which is in the north by Lake Victoria. The first few days, Tyren will spend valuable time with the pastor, and then he will minister for a few days in the mother church in Mwanza. The Lord willing, Tyren will then travel with Pastor Deus to visit some of his churches in other parts of the country, serving the believers as the Lord directs (teaching, preaching and the working of the Holy Spirit with power in the churches for the sake of the word the Lord gave me for them).

We are asking you to join with us, praying and interceding for this time of ministry. The cry of the churches has been for revival. Jesus is even more extreme, He desires to respond by giving them Himself. What else is the focus of revival? We are believing God to prepare the believer’s hearts for an outpouring of His Holy Spirit, prepare hearts to carry His glory, and for His church to seek His face and trust Him to bring about transformation and renewal. As always, we also believe for miracles, healings, restoration, deliverance and salvations. Hallelujah!

Please seek the Lord and pray with thanksgiving as the Lord directs. Pray for His glory, His presence, power, protection, provision, peace, and guidance. Also pray for the Lord’s presence and protection for my family while I am away. God wants to prepare the believers in Tanzania to receive Himself. We thank Him for the privilege of taking part in what God will do in their lives.

All for Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

Photos: Mother church in Mwanza (photo from www.irismin.com), map of Tanzania

Update: Blessings in the Home

2009-12-04T07:50:00.000+02:00

Introducing My Mom to Lichinga
We gave my mom a small taste of Lichinga, from bean leaves, bean patties, bananas (that only last about 2-3 days), roasted peanuts, to Tiffany’s homemade veggie burgers, fried minnows and cema (boiled maize flour). We also were blessed to have chicken a couple of times and cheese. We’ve gotten used to some things here, but my mom was pretty shocked by some of the things that are different. Most things happen at a much slower pace, people “cut in line” (as we would call it in the U.S.) at stores or even at the airline office and don’t think twice about it, fruit that looks perfectly good still could have small worms in it, you can’t flush toilet paper at many places, and little children carry their baby brothers and sisters on their backs. Yes, things are culturally different here. One day we ate with Victo and Gazani at the bible school. A boy was there who tasted ice cream the first time in his life (my mom bought ice cream for us all). Victo had to instruct the boy in eating it so it would stop hurting his throat (don’t chew it…don’t swallow too much, too quickly). Sunday I accompanied my mom as far as Maputo, Mozambique, on her way back home to America, and then I returned back to Lichinga on Dec 1.

Wood Table: After many months of waiting, we finally picked up our folding round table from the carpenter. We designed the table to save living space and be expandable to accommodate a total of 10 – 12 people. The stools are supposed to be completed before the end of this week.
Wall of Fire: My mom helped me put up the wood frames that will support the second part of the Nachazi wood wall (“wall of fire”). The frames will allow us to build the wall up to the roof (we have a single storey house, and none of the rooms have a ceiling).
Internet Access: We also have internet access from our own house now. Thank you Jesus! Now Tiffany can use the internet more often, and it’s easier for us to write and respond to emails. A local phone company offers a wireless phone with internet service. We power the phone via solar power.

Free Furniture: My wife has wanted a sofa for a while. Someone told us that they had furniture for sale, but when we arrived at the person’s house we found out that the furniture was sold even before we received the message. After missing out on the furniture at another missionary sale, my wife talked to God about the fact that we kept missing out on all of the good furniture that was for sale in our area and how she didn’t want to settle for furniture that she didn’t like. Well, the next day when we went to someone’s house, Tiffany remarked on how she liked the furniture. The individual gave Tiffany the handmade furniture, 2 sofas and one cushioned chair, for FREE! The person had just bought new furniture and was considering what to do with the existing furniture. The furniture Tiffany received is exactly the type she likes.

Refrigerator: My praying wife also asked the Lord for a fridge. It’s not simple to run a nice size fridge off of solar panels. But, when the Holy Spirit told me to start looking for one, I knew Tiffany was going to have what she’d been praying for. While I was in Maputo (the capital of Mozambique), I found a medium sized fridge with a freezer section (just the kind my wife wanted), and it uses a lot less power than many others, so it can run off of our solar system. As I am writing, I’m thinking that this blog update could have easily been filled up with the “Testimonies of my Praying Wife”.

As always, thank you for your prayers and gifts of love that you send to us. Let us know if you have any prayer requests that you would like to share with us. May the Lord continue to show us all His face and let His favor rest upon us.

Always for His love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

For contact or donation information, please visit our blog at http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Welcoming Tyren's Mom To Africa

2009-11-18T14:24:00.000+02:00

Tyren's Mom In Africa
Nov. 8th we arrived at the Lichinga airport to a lot of welcoming shouts by the missionaries from our center in Lichinga. Amerel and Isaiah were filled with joy and shouted out, “Grandma!” as they watched us from the airport balcony emerge from the plane! We are taking my Mom around to different places to get a taste of the culture, languages, food, market, stores, city, villages and the bugs. Of course, my mom is enjoying seeing her grandchildren, even little Chayah who will be 5 months old next week. She is also getting to see first-hand the fruit of life-long prayers for me, and the fruits of laying down her own life to see her children grow in the Lord. That is a very precious gift. This week, my mom joined our ministry team in the hospital, loving and praying for people who couldn’t understand her language. My mom has extended her stay for another 9 days, so she has more time to experience the consuming fire (love) of God being poured out over Lichinga.

Iris Children’s Center in Maputo, Mozambique
The Lord did a lot of wonderful things during my short trip to the Iris Children’s Center in Maputo. I learned more about resting and relaxing in Christ, and also how loving my neighbor includes letting my neighbor love me as he/she can. So, I spent a lot of time with the children and with visitors from other nations. At the Bocaria, the huge garbage dump where people live and build homes, we witnessed the Lord restoring sight to a woman. Our small team was about to leave her house when the presence of the Lord came suddenly upon us. Right then, the Lord said to me twice, “My presence is everything”. While we worshipped the Lord (we couldn’t do anything else), the poor-sighted woman tapped her friend and said, “I can see them standing there.” The Lord began to heal the woman’s eyes while we were worshipping! Isn’t Jesus amazing! (Since being back in Lichinga, I’ve received 3 testimonies of people being healed who were prayed for. More than being physically healed, faith and love for Jesus grew in these people’s hearts).

Ripples from the Chiuaula Outreach
In March of this year, we organized an outreach in the Chiuaula district of Lichinga. A man, who attended that event, recently went to our Iris church in the city and accepted Jesus as his Savior. Since that outreach, the Lord had been working on the man’s heart, and the man reported that he knew he had to surrender his life to the Lord. At the church, he actually prayed by himself to receive Jesus Christ as his Savior.

Long after we share the gospel with people, or hold an outreach event, the effects of our prayers and service are still kindling a fire in the hearts of people. Perhaps, we’re no longer thinking about what was done, but others are remembering and longing for more. We refuse to stop believing in the power of the gospel and in Jesus Christ. We joyfully admit, we are in love and so desperately dependent on the lover of our souls. His love compels us to draw people to His heart. There is no other place for us, our own children, or the people of Mozambique to turn. Jesus values your work and ours in His kingdom. He watches over His word and work to perform it until the end. Let us continue to pray together, stand together and believe together until the cries of the Father’s heart become the living reality in thousands of lives throughout Mozambique.

Always for His love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

For contact or donation information, please visit our blog at http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Photos: Chayah getting used to grandma, Celebrating Amerel's and Isaiah's birthdays.

The Lord Continues To Do Great Things

2009-10-29T10:22:00.000+02:00

City Ministry
Ministry in the Hospital and Prisons is going well. Weekly, other missionaries from our center have been joining Victo and I to visit patients in the hospital. We laugh and joke with the patients, play with the children and sing songs in the local Yao language. We also pray for them, and seek the Lord’s heart for His living word to share with them. This week, I asked Victo to lead the hospital ministry. He is full of love, and has a big heart for the hospital ministry.

The Lord’s presence and glory is always with us as we are meeting in the prison. Last week, after having communion with the guys, I asked them to show the same love that Jesus showed them. I brought cookies, and had them hand out cookies to all of the surrounding prisoners, friends and foes, (who are not part of the group of believers). Besides praying that things would remain calm (I think cookies must be on the most wanted list inside the prison), I was in awe as the presence of the Lord captured men’s hearts to hear about the life of love that Jesus wants us to live. God has something wonderful in store for the prison. Pray that the believers stay focused on Jesus, protection for their minds and hearts, breaking of habits, and that they would be consumed by God’s plan for their lives.

Assumane Village
Last Thursday, Victor and I had a wonderful time with the children in the grass church. The children loved the play parachute and beach balls. After, we briefly taught them how to carry the love of God.

Visiting Children’s Center in Maputo, Mozambique
From Oct. 29 – Nov. 6, Tyren will be at the Iris Children’s Center in the capital of Maputo. The Lord is sending me just to serve, however I’m needed there. Pray that the Lord fills me with His love and glory while I am there, and truly humbles me to serve Him. Then, on Nov. 7, I’ll meet my Mom at the airport. We’ve been praying that we’d be able to fly back to Lichinga on Nov. 8 instead of Nov. 9. Well, this past Tuesday, the airlines called me to say that they canceled the flight for Nov. 9, and now we were able to fly on Nov. 8. God only does wonderful things. Pray for God’s love, joy and protection over Tiffany and our children who will remain in Lichinga.

Always for love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

For contact or donation information, please visit our blog at http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Photos: playing with children in Assumane, the Nachazi wood in our house

The Growing Iris Center in Lichinga, Mozambique

2009-10-20T22:32:00.000+02:00

Iris Center in Lichinga
We wanted to update you on the Iris Center on which we currently live, and how the Lord has been adding to it. We now have 15 full-time adult missionaries (3 are local Mozambicans), 10 missionary children (and another on the way because Tanya Gellatly is due in December). Tanya was the one who did the awesome job watching our kids and preparing hot water, etc. to use during Chayah’s birth. Now, we have missionaries from Australia, U.S., England and Mozambique. During this year, we’ve been blessed with several visitors who have come to check out the center, and also help build and take part in evangelism. The center is still going through the legal process of selecting orphans, and also getting final approval for the orphan children’s house that has been built for little girls. Hopefully, the process will end soon, and the center can begin bringing children “home”.

Church in Assumane Village
The church that used to meet at a grass and stick hut outside the white mission house (where we used to live) moved to Assumane village in September. Jessie and Tanya Gellatly are leaders over the church. The church is often mostly full of children. The new church building is also grass and stick. We are praying for at least 3 more permanent buildings that will be used for children’s church on Sunday. Also, during the week, they can be used for other activities with the children. During the rainy season, Nov. – March, it rains often, is windy and gets very muddy, so it’s difficult to plan and do activities with the children outside.

This week, Victo and I will begin using the church just to meet with children and teach them more about the God of their salvation and the beautiful relationship that Jesus wants to have with them.

My Mom is Coming to Lichinga! My mom is visiting us for about 2 weeks in November! I’ll meet her in Maputo on Nov. 7 and will fly back with her to Lichinga. We are all excited, especially Amerel and Isaiah. This will be her first time in Africa. We are definitely going to take her around to the villages and the city to have fun and take part in our ministry. We are praying the Lord will radically blast her with His love and leave her changed forever.

In His love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

For contact or donation information, please visit our blog at http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Photos: New missionaries at our center, Jung family, who arrived in September
Photo of church in Assumane Village
Missionary children having their own baking day

Greater Harvest Within the Prison Walls

2009-10-07T10:21:00.000+02:00

On Tuesday mornings, Victo, myself and others from our center who desire to join us are serving the men at the prison. The Lord specifically told me that He has given me access to the prison in order to bring the men into their divine destinies. A few weeks ago, we expected to meet with 4 to 5 men. But on that day, about 20 men met with us and then asked us to come weekly to teach them. The Christian men understand why they are there, but they are also being taught to see themselves as their heavenly Father calls them- not prisoners but sons of God. Last week, 3 people accompanied me to the prison. After teaching, the Holy Spirit told me that we needed to individually pray and prophesy over each prisoner because He wanted to give each one a specific word that was applicable to their situation and would immediately help them walk in the purpose of God for their lives right now. We ran out of time last week, so we returned this week to finish praying, prophesying, and counseling them.

There are so many stories to tell, but I’ll tell just one short exciting one that I witnessed. When one man asked for prayer, the Holy Spirit told me He was innocent. So, I asked the man to tell me his story, and he shared with me that someone else broke the law, but he was put into prison instead (there are others with similar stories). The Lord had me tell the man that although Satan tried to rob him of his life and time, the Lord was going to restore time and use this time in prison to hasten the purposes of God for his life. In fact, when the man is released, he is going to be doing things for the Lord a lot sooner than if he had never went to prison. Now that’s the Father’s love and justice for His children. The man’s eyes opened. He explained to me that he understood that God was being good to him. He knew God hadn’t forgotten about him, leaving him to suffer, when he hadn’t done any wrong. In that instant, the man began to exercise faith and fully depend on God to fulfill His will for his life. This week, I brought a guitar so he can play it as we all worship together inside the prison walls.

Besides, ministering to these men, we also want to do some projects that will help bring them income to buy toothbrushes, toothpaste, clothes (they have to wear their own clothes not uniforms), and other daily necessities that aren’t supplied by the prison. We believe God is going to use these men for great things. As only God can, He is using a prison as a spring-board or catalyst to transform their lives, restore their hopes and futures (Jeremiah 29:11), and prepare them to live productive, God-fearing lives one day outside the prison walls. Pray for these men. Pray that God’s glory covers the prison and His fire (passionate love) totally transforms the lives of the prisoners. There are many unbelievers there, especially Muslims, and they too desperately need a personal relationship with Jesus.

(Sorry we can’t include photos, but pray with us. Perhaps one day, we will be allowed to take photos inside the prison walls).

In His love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com
http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

For contact or donation information, please see information directly on our blog at http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Grace In Guerra Village - Evangelism

2009-09-28T09:07:00.000+02:00

Evangelism In Guerra Village: Earlier this year, the Lord put 3 districts within Lichinga on my heart and He gave me a specific word for each district. Last Friday, Sept. 18, several of our missionaries and myself, went out to encourage Guerra Village (in the Sanjala district of Lichinga) to rise up and walk in their new life with Jesus Christ. Before the event, many of our missionaries joined in prayer for the outreach and the people of Guerra. It was a night of joy and holy expectation, and the presence and power of God filled the field where we did the outreach. Going into the event, I knew that the Lord was already doing mighty things through our team’s unity and prayers for the people of Guerra. Using a simple drama, I demonstrated how and why Jesus forgives and cleanses us from sin, and then gives us a new and completely different life with Him. Many children and adults received Jesus. As Victor translated in Yao (the local language), we led the children in prayer to bless the adults (who were standing behind them) and their village. We also taught the people three words, “Jesus loves you, in English. They loved that. One drunk woman, who kept trying to hug me, ended up crying out for prayer as I told her about Jesus. The team continued to pray for people as myself and others tried our best to hand out tracts. Pray that the Christians in Sanjala rise up to obey the call of God for their lives, and that they walk in love and forgiveness toward others.

We Have The Nachazi Wood: Thank you to everyone that has been praying with us concerning getting Nachazi wood to complete the inside wall of our house. The meetings with the forestry department went well. We legally purchased the wood for a good price! Most of the wood is at a wood shop getting planed (to smooth it out and bring out the colors). It has been well over a year ago that the Lord showed me a wall inside our house that was completed in wood. We are so happy, that by faith (Heb. 11:2), we contended for what the Lord said (His testimony), instead of making up our own testimony by looking for a cheaper and faster way to finish the inside wall of our house.

Thank you for praying for us. We mostly write about the activities that we are engaged in, but often the sweetest and most precious work is what the Lord is doing in our hearts. It is out of what the Lord is doing inside of us, that we are able to focus on His face and do the work of the ministry. We have been amazed lately, at how quickly the Lord has been responding to prayer and noticeably changing the atmosphere in areas of Lichinga. Pray that the spiritual barriers would be broken down, for open-doors of ministry especially among muslims, and more love in our hearts. Prayer establishes the pathways before us and helps us to stand firm in the promises of God for our lives and the nation of Mozambique. Keep praying. Great things are happening.

In His love that is so big and so great,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com
http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Phone numbers:
Tyren +258827413545
Tiffany +258827316365 (we are 6 hours ahead of EST. Example: 9 A.M. in N.Y. is 3 P.M. here)

Photos: Preaching in Guerra Village, watching the Jesus film in Guerra

Celebrating 12 Years of Marriage

2009-09-19T10:23:00.000+02:00

Our 12th Wedding Anniversary
On Sunday, September 13, Tiffany and I celebrated our 12th Anniversary! I took my beautiful wife for dinner at the Girassol Hotel. I went the day before to ask them to bake a cake for her. I was surprised to see that it had real whipped topping, Tiffany’s favorite. To my surprise, Tiffany baked a pound cake for me and put a beautiful jar of colored flowers in the middle. She picked the field flowers from around our yard. As we prayed and thanked God for our marriage, the Lord spoke many things to us including new things He has for us. On Wednesday, the missionaries at our center blessed us with a cake and gifts. The best of all was that each of them received a scripture or word from God for us. My wife and I sat together as they sang, prophesied, encouraged us greatly in our work for the Lord, and prayed over us. The Lord’s love and refreshing showered us as each person took the time to recognize our anniversary and celebrate it with us. The Lord has truly blessed us with a wonderful family here, who love us and stand by us and with us.

Baking Day With The Ladies
If you know my wife, you know she likes to bake certain things. Now, our growing center is full of women that also enjoy baking sweet things. Even though we often write about God saving, helping and healing people; knowing how to spend time with others and use other gifts God has given us (like baking) is just as important and fun. In the photo from left to right: Annelisa, Tanya (who is pregnant and due with their first baby in December, Tiffany and Melissa. They made brownie cake, blondies, banana cream pie (minus the cream) and double-decker cookies.

Love Is Flowing - Healings
In the last blog, we wrote about a woman, who went to a funeral and returned acting crazy. Victor and I went to Guerra Village twice to pray for her. Last night, the daughter of the woman told us that her mother is healed! We are definitely going to visit that woman and share the good news of Jesus Christ with her. Hopefully, I will remember to bring my camera to take pictures of your new family in Christ Jesus.

My friend White, who lives in Asumani Village, told me that his wife was sick. Whenever she tried to walk or work out in the sun, her heart would beat quickly and she would have to rest. She hasn’t able to walk around much during the day time, and couldn’t work in her garden. For many people, walking is the main transportation. They also need to work in their garden just to eat and stay alive. When Victor and I prayed for her about a week ago, White told us that she was only feeling a little better. After praying for her again this week, White told me she was completely healed. Hallelujah!

We love you. Continue to pray with us and for us for the plans and purposes of God to unfold in our lives. Please send us your prayer requests also. We’d love to join with you, believing God for the great things He wants to do in your life.

For the love of Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com
http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Photos: Tiffany and I on our Anniversary Day, the ladies baking, Cake Tiffany made for me

Phone numbers:
Tyren +258827413545
Tiffany +258827316365 (we are 6 hours ahead of EST. Example: 9 A.M. in N.Y. is 3 P.M. here)

Mailing Address in Lichinga:
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
C.P. 261
Lichinga 90100
Niassa, Mozambique

Testimonies: The Past Few Weeks

2009-09-02T13:11:00.000+02:00

Hospital Ministry: Victo and I have been ministering in the Lichinga hospital on Mondays for several months now. Victo recently prayed for a room of patients. Another person on the ministry team told us that when she visited the hospital the next day, the nurses told her they found that everyone in the room was healed. After examining them, they sent all the patients home. Hallelujah! We continue to experience patients surrendering their lives to Jesus. The Lord also gives us prophetic words to speak to the staff, who are believers, encouraging them to pursue the call of God for their lives. Join us in praying that the believers within the hospital staff will start demonstrating the love and healing power of the Jesus Christ while they are working.

In The Village: A few weeks ago Amerel came along with Victo, Peter (a new Mozambican missionary at our center), and I to evangelize in Asumani Village. Many children and a woman gave their lives to Jesus. While we were teaching on Jesus’ love for us, the woman gave Amerel a big papaya. Food is a precious gift here. The lady, filled with joy, said that her family loved Amerel and invited her to eat with them at any time. Shortly afterwards, we prayed for a boy who had a toothache. The first time we prayed he wasn’t healed. We prayed the 2nd time and then for the 3rd time, asking the Lord to show His mercy. We then just waited with our hands on the boy. Finally, I asked Victo to ask the boy if the pain was still there. His toothache was totally gone. I told Victo that I was surprised that the pain was gone. Amerel looked at me and said, “I wasn’t. I knew the Lord was going to heal him”.

Day of Ministry This Past Monday: For the city, I often pray, asking the Lord to help me not to miss the opportunities He has for me, even if it means I cancel my plans for grocery shopping and come home with nothing or very little. On this day, the plan was to evangelize then head across town to buy a desk for Isaiah to use in school. We went to the Sangala market and immediately the Holy Spirit told me to believe. I knew something was about to happen, and I had to trust in however it was about to happen. The market was full of people, but I saw one man that just caught my attention. So I knew I had to speak with him. I walked over to him and just started talking. The Lord gave a prophetic word for his life. I looked at the young lady next to him (she was also a believer), and immediately the Lord gave me a word and teaching for her life. Then, I looked at the lady next to the young girl and began speaking to her. After Victo ministered to this muslim woman, she also gave her life to the Lord. It was getting late and I was about to leave to go look for a desk. As I turned around I stared into the faces of 3 beautiful children. These muslim children also surrendered their lives to the Savior, to worship and live only for Him. Then, a man came to us and asked us to pray for someone. He brought us to a woman who then led us on a walk to her house. They were all muslims. The woman’s mother had gone to a funeral and came back acting crazy as though she was possessed. First, a young girl in the family gave her life to Jesus. Then, the woman surrendered her life to Jesus also. We prayed for the woman’s mother. The love of God flowed upon her mother while we were at their house. Friday, we are going back to her house to check on the condition of the mother and share more about the salvation of Jesus Christ. We are believing the mother’s mind will be restored, and we’ll be able to preach the good news of Jesus Christ to her also. Well, by now several hours had passed. I never got to go search for that desk, but we knew the will of God had been done.

Our God is great, and greatly to be praised! We thank Him for the privilege of allowing us to lose our lives and find them only in Him. Pray for us, that we learn how to trust Him more, and carry His glory. Join us in praying for more muslims to experience the love and salvation of Jesus Christ.

Because of His great love for us,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com
http://heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Phone numbers:
Tyren +258827413545
Tiffany +258827316365 (we are 6 hours ahead of EST. Example: 9 A.M. in N.Y. is 3 P.M. here)

Photos: All 3 of our kids, Amerel in Asumani, Home school started for 2009.

Update On Completing Our House

2009-08-03T11:36:00.001+02:00

Jesus is doing wonderful things in various areas of ministry, and we’ll be sure to share the testimonies with you soon. But, we wanted to give you an update on the ministry of building our house – the House of God’s Pleasure.

Updates On Our House (the House for God’s Pleasure)
Our borehole water is being gravity fed into our bathroom sink (see photo). We connected this right before the baby was born. We also have a tap under the sink to fill up buckets if needed. I’m (Tyren) in the process of measuring and connecting the pipes for the kitchen sink. We had to drill through our cement walls, but we’ll patch them up and re-paint them.

We were also blessed with a generator to run the pump for the borehole. The company that purchased and shipped the generator to us sent us the next higher model by mistake. They let us keep it and said they’d cover the difference in cost. Praise God! We know that there is purpose in everything God does in His love. We can hear what the Lord is speaking to us through His generous natural gifts (like a cool generator), testifying to us about what He has called us and enabled us to do here in Mozambique.

Using the small solar unit that a couple of families blessed us with, we are powering two lights. We are working to enlarge our existing solar system to accommodate a few more lights (and possibly a small fridge in the future. The fridge is a dream, but since it’s on our hearts we believe that there is some way that it’ll work out). Our two lights are such a blessing, especially at night and with a newborn.

We painted our kitchen a bright yellow to match the sunflowers on our curtains (see photo). We also found the colorful mahogany wood for the paneling on the unfinished wall (opposite the kitchen). Recently, I learned that it is only legal to buy the mahogany from the central market. Many, many people are buying it illegally from the “street vendors” because it’s readily available and a lot cheaper. I met someone who told me that he could get all the wood I needed, but when I told him that I had to honor God and do it legally, he didn’t bring me any. If I have time this week, I’m going to go to the main Dept. of Agriculture office, tell them my story, and ask for their official permission to have some wood cut. Please pray for understanding and God’s favor when I have the meeting.

Living a Life of Love
As the Lord is continuing to test us and break our hearts for His heart the past few weeks, we’ve found ourselves in a greater place of living a life in His love. Iris Ministries is known for it. And, there really is a “place” where love, the river of life, flows to bring life and healing wherever it goes (Ezekiel 47). Please pray for us, that we rest in His love, and the very heart of our ministry is motivated out of the Lord’s desperate heart of love for us and the people of Mozambique. We need to continually live laid-down lives so that people can meet Jesus through us. He’s the one they long for. He’s the only one that saves. Thank you for praying with us, and for working alongside of us to bring a needy people to the feet of Him who is desperately longing to make them whole again.

Special note for our financial supporters:
Please include your email address along with your next donation. In this way, we’ll be able to send you “thank you” emails and specific updates on how people are being blessed through your giving. Thank you so much!

Because of His great love for us,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com

www.heartsforharvest.blogspot.com

Phone numbers:
Tyren +258827413545
Tiffany +258827316365 (we are 6 hours ahead of EST. Example: 9 A.M. in N.Y. is 3 P.M. here)

Photos: Bathroom sink with faucet, Painted kitchen with sunflower curtains, Amerel cooking pancakes

Moments of Being Hard Pressed

2009-07-20T10:45:00.000+02:00

Sorry, we weren’t able to update you until now. Mainly, it’s because the last 2 weeks and a half, I, Tyren, have been extremely tired and haven’t been able to do much of anything, ministry or working around the house. Using the internet, and even shopping was exhausting. The Lord told me to rest (for days…ahh), but it was worth it.

Summary of the Past Two Weeks
These last few weeks have been times of great testing, and as one person told us, God is stretching us, but it’s going to work out for our good. Sparing many of the details, here’s some of “hard-pressing” that occurred in the past two weeks. We were publically insulted concerning Chayah’s at home birth. I’ve been insulted in public twice, mocked and talked about, 3 times the Lord saved me from motor accidents (including a head on collision with a car that never moved out of my lane. Another time, I borrowed a friend’s car but the breaks wouldn’t stop the car quickly even after pumping them. The Lord saved me from ramming into a car that day and possibly injuring myself and others.) Then, Chayah stopped nursing for almost a whole day (for some reason). We sent a phone text to other missionaries to pray. Literally, as soon as I hit the send button (before the text was actually sent out), Chayah started nursing again like she had never stopped. Then, there are many other things we haven’t mentioned. We count it “pure joy” when we come into various trials (James 1:2), knowing that “our light affliction…is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. (2 Cor. 4:17)” Truly we are being hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed, perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not forsaken, struck down, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:8-9). Though we face many hardships, our only focus has been our prayer – God keep us focused on the great love you have for us. His love is and must be everything. There is nothing else that sustains us.

Glimpses of Love and Grace
In the midst of all the “hard-pressing and perplexing things” the Lord has been doing great things (of course). Yes, there’s Chayah eating again, and having my life and health preserved in more instances than we wrote about. There was also the great blessing of having a few people cook meals for us after Chayah was born. Also, the Lord showed me extraordinary favor when getting Chayah’s birth certificate here in Lichinga. I was brought to the front of a long line. Then, instead of waiting outside in the hot sun with everyone else, I was brought inside an office and given a chair. Then, a man inside the office put aside his other work and personally attended to me. He quickly completed the official birth certificate and sent me away cheerfully with a smile. I left the building, walking past a lot of people who arrived at the Town Registry long before me and were still waiting in line. Another day, I prayed for an employee at a store who had a toothache. Several days later when I saw him again, he told me that after I prayed, the pain went away and hadn’t come back. Hallelujah!!

The Family Is Well
Chayah is well, chubby, and gaining more weight. Tiffany is doing wonderful. Amerel and Isaiah are still “head over heels” that their little sister is finally here. They knock on the doorway of our bedroom early in the morning just to see if she’s awake. Oh, just before Chayah was born, we hooked up running water to our bathroom sink. Hopefully, we can include updated house photos in the next blog.

Pray with us and for us. Rejoice with us, as we cry out and contend to lay down our lives more for our Lord, ever looking forward to see a greater outpouring of the riches of His kingdom (love, joy, peace, righteousness, gentleness…) and His presence in Mozambique.

Because of His great love for us,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com

Phone numbers:
Tyren +258827413545
Tiffany +258827316365 (we are 6 hours ahead of EST. Example: 9 A.M. in N.Y. is 3 P.M. here)

Photos: Chayah at 25 days old
Crib with swinging bassinet

June 25: We Gave Birth To Our Baby Girl

2009-07-04T09:36:00.000+02:00

Birth of Chayah Grace Haynes
On June 25, Independence Day in Mozambique, at ~ 8:22 a.m., our little girl was born in our bedroom. Her name is Chayah Grace Haynes, which signifies “God’s might for grace”. Grace for grace. The ‘Ch’ is pronounced ‘K’, but here in Mozambique people pronounce it ‘Sh’. Chayah was 8 lbs. 2 oz. (~3.7 kg), and 19 ¾ inches long. The Lord actually gave me this name well over 2 years ago before we left for the mission field. I kept it in my heart, but didn’t know it was the name of our daughter. Mom and Baby are doing well. Amerel and Isaiah are overwhelmed with excitement. They have waited so long to meet their new sibling.

With the Lord’s help, Tiffany and I delivered the baby ourselves in our bedroom. I had been involved in both Amerel and Isaiah’s births. I caught Isaiah when he came out of the womb, and I cut the cord for both of them. So, I had a much better idea of what to expect during this birth. Another missionary arrived just before 8:00 a.m., and stayed out in the kitchen to watch over our kids, and keep water hot on the stove. Contractions that Tiffany could feel started at 12:00 midnight June 25. The delivery wasn’t pain free as we had been praying and believing. When the harder and painful contractions started, honestly, we were thoroughly disappointed. But, a “moment of light afflictions” and disappointment could not compare with the great things the Lord had done the previous months and things He was doing now, delivering our baby safely into our hands. We chose at that moment to worship and praise Him. There was nothing else to do. There is no failure and disappointment in Who He is and what He does.

I was amazed at the grace the Lord gave me to watch, encourage and coach Tiffany, and maintain the cleanliness of the birth surface and everything else. If you had a baby, or were involved in the birthing room, then you understand the work the nurses often have to do during and after the birth. Even so, I felt like I hardly did a thing, and that Tiffany was the one in the room doing all the work. I thought I was going to have to break the water sac as it was coming out, but it suddenly broke on its own. As Chayah’s head came out, the cord was wrapped tightly around her neck. For some reason, I thought this might happen, so I made sure I learned the right way to bring the cord over the baby’s head. When Chayah was born, many of her signs were opposite than the ones we were told were good. Her temperature was too low, her feet were blue, no signs of breathing, totally limp, not crying, etc. Not even Amerel, with whom Tiffany was in labor for 38 hours came out like this. When naturally, fear wanted to step in, a sure knowledge of what the Lord had promised us moved us forward, and broke any other thoughts of fear trying to form themselves in our hearts. We prayed. I checked her nose and suctioned her mouth (just in case). I saw the wind of the Holy Spirit. Immediately afterwards, I saw our little girl breathe once. Then, she did it again. Tiffany said, “She’s sleeping.” Immediately I saw that our little girl was born fast asleep. I believe the Lord just had her take those noticeable two, very little breaths to let us know that all was already ok. We kept her warm, and rubbed her. I delivered the placenta, cut the cord and finished up other things. More than 1 hour later, Chayah’s temperature was slowly climbing higher within the “acceptable range”. The only thing we had to warm up the baby was warm cloths that were wrapped around a heated metal thermos and mommy’s body heat. A little after 10 a.m., a missionary midwife came to check the baby, the placenta, and Tiffany. This midwife (the only one around) didn’t want to be there during the birth (because she has been out of practice for so long), but we are thankful for her coming afterwards.

4 M.O.P.S. Boxes Arrived
July 2, we received 4 flat rate postal boxes full of clothes, baby toys and other essentials for baby and Mommy that our home church’s M.O.P.S. (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) group, along with some other members from our church, donated and shipped to us. What a blessing! We were excited to hear that many of you decided to get together and make something happen that one person would not have been able to do by themselves. Thank you! The boxes arrived un-opened (as usual).

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. Pray that we grow in strength and humility, and a determination to see more of Lichinga experience the mighty presence of the Lord.

(Sorry we were only able to upload one photo of Chayah. Look forward to another photo next time.) Happy Independence Day!!!

All for the name of the Lord,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com

Digging Deep - Springing Forth From The Aquifer

2009-06-15T09:22:00.000+02:00

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Drilling the Bore Hole (~120 feet deep)
On June 11, a team of men, several trucks, a tractor and lots of equipment arrived at our house. About 6 hours later, the bore hole was dug and the pipes was installed and sealed. The bore hole is a little over 120 feet deep. The last 9 feet of the digging was through solid rock (the kind of rock that contains a lot of water). The Lord truly blessed this event. It was more like a casual meeting with friends rather than working through a business deal worth thousands of dollars. The Holy Spirit also gave several opportunities to share the gospel and further the work he was doing in people’s hearts. On Saturday, my friends and I dug holes, put up the ~15 foot steel tower, and then cemented the legs of the tower into the holes that were dug about 2 ½ feet deep into the ground. The tower was welding together in the city, and then transported by truck to our house. This week, the company plans to come back out and install the pump and tubing which will allow the water to be pumped up to a tank, and then gravity fed from the water tank directly into our house. The “House of God’s Pleasure” will have clean water from the aquifer running through it.

Namacula Outreach – Turning Hearts Toward the Lord
Before the film, our team talked with the people and played with the children. One man gave his life to the Lord before the film and preaching started. The main thing the Lord put on my heart for this outreach was to call His people to seek after Him with their whole heart and live lives to please the Lord. I shared a very brief word from Jeremiah 29:13-14. A large number of adults and children responded. Together we lifted up our hands, asked for forgiveness, and committed ourselves to seeking after our First Love. During the Jesus film, the generator stopped working and we weren’t able to continue even after we got the generator working again. But the Lord’s presence was there, and one of the missionaries led the children in worship (it was beautiful), and then we began praying for the sick and whoever else wanted prayer. We plan to go back some time to replay the Jesus Film, but I also want to hear testimonies from the people who received prayer for healing and those who committed themselves to seeking after the Lord.

Count Down to the New Arrival
The baby hasn’t come yet. We’ll definitely let you know when he/she arrives.

We really enjoy everything that we are doing as missionaries in Africa. We’ve enjoyed living here since we arrived in Lichinga. We do not find it a struggle, but rather it’s a joy both physically and spiritually. We are so happy that we made the decision to follow Jesus and come overseas exactly when we did. We are here with no regrets. Sure we don’t have lots of meat, cheese, ice cream or as much variety or quality of things as in the U.S. But honestly, our hearts are satisfied with the reality of the life we have with Jesus. We are full, abundantly satisfied and content in all ways. We even get to experience a level of community living and relationship with others that we never got to experience in the U.S. We are well, doing well, and are thankful for everything God is giving us, and we choose to continue to follow Him. There is so much the Lord has for us – Lichinga is just the beginning of our overseas journey.

All for Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com

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Counting Down To The New Arrival/Evangelism

2009-05-29T13:20:00.000+02:00

Count Down For The New Arrival
If you’re counting, there’s about 4 weeks left until the due date for the baby. As the weeks approach, we’ll be preparing our bedroom and kitchen to be an at-home birthing area. It won’t be as fancy as those we’re used to but it’ll be comfortable. While in the U.S. earlier this year, we were provided with an at home and an emergency birth kit full of important things we will need for our at home delivery. If you’re wondering, Tiffany and I have no fears about an at home birth. We are actually looking forward to having an exciting time. Tiffany is hoping that she delivers during the day because it gets rather chilly at night and we have no access to indoor heating.

A store in Lichinga actually began selling a number of different cribs. Tiffany found one that she liked. None of them seem to be as strong as the ones we can get in the U.S., but they appear to be sturdy and are so cute! They even come with mosquito nets to help protect the baby against malaria. We should be able to purchase it today. Thank you again for everyone that blessed us financially at the baby shower at Church of the Living God. We are using some of that money now to buy the crib. We’ll definitely send you a photo when we set it up.

Upcoming Namacula Outreach
The Lord put it on my heart to have an outreach in Namacula Village. It will be on Saturday, Jun 13. Other missionaries from our center will be involved in live worship, playing the Jesus Film, preaching, praying for the sick, and calling on Christians to renew their love for Christ and commit to living holy lives. We will be praying and fasting, believing God to pour out His Spirit, reveal His heart, heal lives, break chains, and change the atmosphere over that huge village. Please join us in praying for this outreach.

Amerel in Asumani
About a week ago, Amerel went with “Daddy” to Asumani to play with the children, and help Victor and I preach to the unsaved. She did a wonderful job playing soccer, and telling the children about Jesus. As you may imagine, the other children were very interested in hearing another child telling them testimonies about what Jesus has done.

Visiting The Prison
Yesterday was my first day visiting inmates at Lichinga’s prison. I reached my hand around the steel gate to unlock the latch and open the main gate of the prison. Immediately after entering the prison walls, one enters the main yard for the prison (it’s full of guards, of course). Immediately to the left is the guard hut, where I had to leave my cell phone, bag and anything else. In the main yard, most of the prisoners are allowed to walk freely. I sat and talked to a group fixing shoes with a knife, glue and rubber line. About 30 feet away there was another group chopping wood with an axe. Then, right next to them was a group cooking lunch. I sat down and met my new friends. I so appreciated their kindness in letting me sit with them, talking with them (in Portuguese), and learning how and why they were in prison. I know the Lord has wonderful plans for them. Please pray that they have true encounters with Jesus that will transform their lives and prepare them for life outside of prison.

All for Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
Heartsforharvest@yahoo.com

Photos:
1) Insect: Walking stick thing on the side of our house. This one was as long as your hand.
2) Amerel washing clothes in our new outside sink.
3) A wonderful dish of white rice and sautéed minnows. We actually like it.

(May 4) What Are We Up To?

2009-05-21T01:49:00.000+02:00

Sorry, it’s taken a while to write. Last week, I was able to send a few emails, but I couldn’t update our blog. I am not able to update the blog now either, so please accept the updates via email (pictures are sent as an attachment). Jesus is doing a lot of wonderful things in the ministry (salvations, healings, divine protection), but we wanted to take a little time to let you know about some of the other things we are doing.

Photos:
1) Building gazebo with friend, Condela
2) Snake in the bathroom!
3) Caterpillar Train. The longest we’ve seen was about 21 feet

We started painting the inside of our house this week. My mom sent paint tints last year, so for most of the house we’re able to create the colors that we want. Many colors in oil based paint are not available here. We mixed lime (powder) with water and then primed the cement walls. That’s how it’s done here. The bathroom and Amerel’s room are shades of pink. Today, I hope to paint Isaiah’s room a shade of blue. Later, we’ll paint the kitchen a shade of yellow, and the school room and our room will be cream. We’ll include some other pictures a little later.

Last week, my friend Condela and I started building the small, round gazebo on top of the Dancing Hill, the small mound on the side of our house. The sides will be about a 1 yard high. That’s the first time I laid cement blocks for a foundation and rounded walls. It took a while measuring and laying the foundation on the uneven hill. Eventually, the gazebo will have a bamboo and grass roof on it. (Condela’s name means God likes/loves me).

We designed our folding kitchen table and gave the plans to the same carpenter who made our windows and doors. The table top will fold open/close. With this design we’ll be able to save space in our eating area, and save money by using less wood and labor on a smaller table. It’s helpful to be able to expand the table when we have guests over.

Speaking of guests, one morning we found a short snake curled up behind our toilet bowl. We don’t know how many nights we had been relaxing in there with a snake about 2 feet away from our feet. I was getting concerned over the 4 or 5 snakes that have been either on our veranda, where our children play, and then the one in the bathroom. Then, the Holy Spirit spoke to me asking me why I was focused on there being snakes and not on the fact that I killed them or chased them off. His word helped me to see clearly and gave me a different perspective. Something good was happening in the spirit.

We hooked up a plug-in, under the counter light to our solar panel battery system. Now we have one light at night! Since the center wall in our house isn’t completed, the light shines into the children’s rooms (which they love), the kitchen and part of the bathroom (if you keep the door open).

We thank God that we’re getting closer to finishing the work on the House of God’s Pleasure. Much is being built up in our lives and in the kingdom of God during this home building process. Please continue to pray that we yield to Jesus’ transforming power, and He continues to do a deep work in our hearts to make us more like Him.

Longing to be more like Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

(May 4) What Are We Up To?

2009-05-20T17:00:00.000+02:00

Last week, my friend Condela and I started building the small, round gazebo on top of the Dancing Hill, the small mound on the side of our house. The sides will be about a 1 yard high. That’s the first time I laid cement blocks for a foundation and rounded walls. It took a while measuring and laying the foundation on the uneven hill. Eventually, the gazebo will have a bamboo and grass roof on it. (Condela’s name means God likes/loves me).

We designed our folding kitchen table and gave the plans to the same carpenter who made our windows and doors. The table top will fold open/close. With this design we’ll be able to save space in our eating area, and save money by using less wood and labor on a smaller table. It’s helpful to be able to expand the table when we have guests over.

Speaking of guests, one morning we found a short snake curled up behind our toilet bowl. We don’t know how many nights we had been relaxing in there with a snake about 2 feet away from our feet. I was getting concerned over the 4 or 5 snakes that have been either on our veranda, where our children play, and then the one in the bathroom. Then, the Holy Spirit spoke to me asking me why I was focused on there being snakes and not on the fact that I killed them or chased them off. His word helped me to see clearly and gave me a different perspective. Something good was happening in the spirit.

We hooked up a plug-in, under the counter light to our solar panel battery system. Now we have one light at night! Since the center wall in our house isn’t completed, the light shines into the children’s rooms (which they love), the kitchen and part of the bathroom (if you keep the door open).

We thank God that we’re getting closer to finishing the work on the House of God’s Pleasure. Much is being built up in our lives and in the kingdom of God during this home building process. Please continue to pray that we yield to Jesus’ transforming power, and He continues to do a deep work in our hearts to make us more like Him.

Longing to be more like Jesus,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
HeartsforHarvest@yahoo.com

Phone

Tyren +258827413545
Tiffany +258827316365
(we are 6 hours ahead of EST. Example: 9 A.M. in N.Y. is 3 P.M. here)

Physical Address
Tyren and Tiffany Haynes
C.P. 261
Lichinga 90100
Niassa, Mozambique

A Desperate Woman Believes God

2009-04-21T01:14:00.000+02:00

This testimony is about many people believing in God’s word and acting on it. We find ourselves in His merciful hands, being prepared to experience more of His love and His glory.

A week ago, Easter Morning, I taught a Sunday message concerning how there can be no more delay (holding back, compromising, not giving God everything) because God said that He is no longer delaying (waiting any longer). He is going to reveal His glory. If we delay in resolving to live for God with everything we have, we’ll miss the waves of glory that He is sending to Lichinga. That very morning before church, I heard someone moving around, more than once, right outside the side door of our house. If it wasn’t for that noise, I would have never looked outside door. A woman that only speaks Jao was sitting quite a distance away from our house. She was hardly noticeable, sitting on a big rock behind some tall grass. To this day, I believe an angel or the Lord made the noise by the house, because the woman wasn’t by our house. I left the house and walked down the road to meet the lady. She presented me with her 8 year old son, Assido, who had a small, twisted hand for 6 years (he would also fall down and have seizures). The Holy Spirit reminded me about the word I had to teach that morning - that there can be no more delay because He is going to reveal His glory. So, I trusted the Lord and believed that the Lord sent the boy to be healed. I learned later that this woman asked permission from her husband, a head muslim of a certain village, to bring their son to our center for prayer because she heard that people who come here for prayer get the peace of God. In the local language of Jao, peace can also mean well-being (in other words, people get what they need from God to resolve their problem). The woman went to the witchdoctor, but the witchcraft didn’t work. (When people go to the witchdoctor, pacts are actually made to appease evil spirits and charms are worn as well).

Because the woman could only speak Jao, I walked with her down the road to the center’s Bible school where Victor and Gazani live. Victor is the only one that speaks fluent Jao, and he would be able to talk with the lady and learn more about her story. I carried her son, praying for him as we went and worshipping the Lord in the few words I knew in Jao. When I reached the Bible School, I saw Gazani and told him that I had an Easter present for Him. I presented the boy to Him and said, “This is your gift from God. As you pray for the boy, the Lord will heal him. Happy Easter!” I was completely serious. I prayed with them for the boy before leaving. It was late and I had to go to pick up someone on my motorbike and bring him to church.

To make the story short I’ll skip to end. This woman attended church and gave her life to the Lord. The church prayed for her, and other missionaries and church members prayed for her in her home as well. She wanted to leave her son with us so we could pray for him, but we thought it wise to pray for him in her home. (In that way, everyone could see that it was the work of God and nothing else). The next day, Monday, the lady told us that her son tried to use his twisted hand 3 times. He hadn’t done that in years. Over the past week, the arm had begun to slowly straighten out and he continues to touch things with his hand. His seizures have also ended! This past Sunday, she came to church with her son who continues to improve physically.

The Lord showed me His justice and righteousness being revealed in the light of His glory. What the Lord did with the little boy is His justice. He is judging situations and doing what He considers to be right. Will not the Judge of the whole earth do right? (Genesis 18:25). We are eager to see what else the Lord has in store for the people of Lichinga. We don’t know what His waves of glory will bring, but we do know that whatever God will do will be good.

This is just the beginning of new beginnings for us and others. We all know that Jesus wants all of our lives. He loves us that much. It’s harvest time, and the Lord is working on our hearts. Let’s sow together (lay down our lives), that together we may reap what Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, has laid down His life to receive.

Love,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes

CHIUAULA OUTREACH FOR THE LOVE OF JESUS

2009-04-18T01:10:00.000+02:00

CHIUAULA OUTREACH
The night evangelism in Chiuaula was powerful. One of the things I enjoyed most was that several of the other missionaries at our center took part in the outreach. I actually typed my first document in Portuguese requesting permission for the event! After receiving the official authorization from the Chiuaula district, Victor and I passed out personal invitations and hung flyers around the main markets in Chiuaula to invite people to see the film. Before showing the Jesus Film, someone gave a testimony about how he came to accept Jesus as the his Savior and how He changed his life, and then Victor sung a song the Lord gave him to thank Him for all that He is doing in his life. After the film we preached the gospel, and many souls came to the Lord including lots of children. We also passed out leaflets called “The Two Paths” to help people make a decision between surrendering their lives to Jesus and living a life of sin. At the end, another one of the missionaries worshipped on the guitar as we prayed for people that needed healing, or wanted prayer for other reasons.

During this time of worship and prayer, another missionary had a thought about the presence of God in that field continuing to touch lives long after the outreach was over, but then thought it was just an idea in her mind. At the same time she had that thought (without saying anything about it), another young lady started declaring the same thing as she was worshipping on the guitar over the microphone. When I was told that, I immediately thought of how I was thinking of an open heaven over the event waiting to pour out the expectancy of the kingdom. We are all continuing to learn just how wonderfully the Holy Spirit loves to communicate His heart with His children. If only we learn to recognize His voice and respond.

(Tiffany writing) When Tyren made the decision to do the outreach at Chiuaula, I felt that doors began to be opened. Even before the outreach took place, the decision to do it caused these doors to be opened over that area…doors that will cause Jesus to be invited into hearts more freely than ever has been in the past. I also felt that strong and long standing spiritual strongholds over that place have been broken and will continue to be broken over that area. I felt that this was not just another ordinary outreach, but that God was and is doing something really big and great here. As though the angels were waiting for Tyren’s decision to do the outreach, and then began to rejoice as they were given assignments and dispatched into this area. I know that something big happened that will allow the greater purposes of God to be accomplished there. Please pray that God will direct us in future ministry in this region.

What’s Going On At Home
Last Saturday, we went along with the other missionaries at our center to Lake Niassa (about 1.5 hrs west of Lichinga) for a few hours to relax and hang out together. We have 3 more months before the little baby arrives (due date is the end of June). We hope to have a crib made or find a sturdy inexpensive one somewhere. This month, we hope to paint all the inside of the house, complete the kitchen counter and shelves, and hopefully finish the shelves for the children’s rooms. Of course, there’s more to do, but everything in its own time.

Please continue to pray that the Lord positions our hearts for His presence. We long to be humble, surrendered to His love that we may be prepared to receive Jesus who is desperate to release His greater glory through our lives and others in Niassa, Mozambique.

We love you,

Tyren and Tiffany Haynes