Proverbs 16:9 “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps” (KJV) 

“We had hoped and planned to return to our home in Sesia in October 2020. (Sesia is the name of the area of Kenya where we live and where we serve the Samburu people.) We have always sought to hold our plans loosely, making plans but trusting God to ultimately direct our steps. He has always been faithful to do just that. So, we will submit to His plans to delay our return to Kenya until early January of 2021. (Lord willing.) So, why are we delaying our return? Well, medical issues for both of us. I had extensive hand surgery in July to deal with a genetic issue, Dupuytrens Contracture, which was causing me pain and making using my left hand difficult. The surgery went well, but the recovery is still ongoing. I developed a rare condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome or CRPS. Basically, I have been dealing with intense pain in my hand since July 8. The surgical pain should have resolved in 4-6 weeks. Unfortunately, the pain never subsided, and, in fact, it intensified. I have been living with lots of meds which only take a slight edge off of the pain. I have had 5 “stellate ganglion nerve blocks” in my neck which were an attempt to “reset” the nerve pain signals. We are waiting for the nerve block process to work. I will meet with my doctor on Monday, Nov 2, to see where we go from here. He has told me that the other 5 patients that he’s had with CRPS have seen the pain resolve within 6 months. My 6 month surgery anniversary will be January 8. Please pray that the pain will indeed go away and stay away. The second medical issue is that Amanda will be having surgery on November 3 to repair a large hiatal hernia. Basically, she has a large hole in her diaphram which has allowed a large section of her stomach to move into her chest cavity. She will be having laparoscopic surgery to repair the hole in her diaphram and to wrap her stomach around the bottom of her esophagus. She will be in the hopital for 1-2 nights and will have a 4-6 week recovery timetable. We are hoping that the surgery will have the added benefit of helping to resolve her coughing issues. Please pray for ther surgery and pray for her as she will be on a very restricted diet for the recovery period.”

Ministry in Kenya Continues Despite Our Delay

“We are grateful to God for our Samburu Ministry Team. Pictured left to right are: Frances and his wife Mama Mpaisi, Jackson and his wife Justine, and Eunice. These faithful servants continue to minister to the Samburu people in our absence. Frances and Jackon are leading 5 worship gatherings weekly. Eunice leads 2 ladies discipleship groups weekly, one of which Mama Mpaisi and Justine attend. Mama Mpaisi is beginning training so that she can lead her own ladies discipleship group in the future. Jackson is also beginning to disciple two men who we hope will be trained to lead worship gatherings in the future. So, we praise God for these servants. Please pray for wisdom and unity for the leadership team, for good communication with us across the miles, as we continue to mentor and disciple!”

Facebook and Instagram – join today

Facebook ministry page: Simmons to the SamburuInstagram ministry page: simmonstothesamburu (Hint: both pages have the same stories most of the time. Some people just prefer to use FB or Instagram)