Tabitha Center

Claudine Selenga teaching the women in the vocational center.

The Tabitha Center is a new ministry here in town started by Claudine Selenga.  She began this ministry after having a Bible Study with her own daughters and some neighborhood girls.  The study she was doing with them was called "Choose Life" published by Would Relief.  Claudine found that these neighborhood girls were very confused about basic facts of life.  She realised the great need throughout Kinshasa for young women to have basic training on their position in life, options for living outside of prostitution, and valuing others.

Figuring out the pattern to a favorite skirt.

Kinshasa is a city with approximately 12 million people.  Many girls come to Kinshasa with hopes of completing school and   then getting a job to support themselves and their families.  Life in Kinshasa is very expensive and many families cannot afford to finance their children all the way through school.  Often the girls drop out and resort to prostitution.  Many children in families in Kinshasa are thrown out on the streets either after being accused of sorcery (witchcraft) or a step parent refuses to accept them into the new marriage to a biological parent.  One-third of the children on the streets are girls and many of them resort to prostitution.

Claudine has a desire to reach out to these girls and help them with training in tailoring, cosmetology or cooking in order to find better options for living.  The first Tabitha Center was opened in the neighborhood of Bendal next to a bar.  The building had been a brothel until the ministry took it over to make it into a vocational school. 
When I visited several weeks ago, I noticed their daily schedule on the door.  Each day begins with Bible and then studying "Choose Life".  Then the vocational training begins.

When I arrived it was already close to 10 a.m. and only one girl showed up.  When I enquired as to why, I was told that many of the girls already have their own children and they have to wait for someone to babysit for them.  Others need transportation to get across town.  I asked if they would begin at the beginning of the schedule when the girls arrived.  The answer was, "Of course!"  So the girls will get Bible teaching and life training even with a relaxed schedule.
There is a great need for these vocational schools to be located in neighborhoods throughout Kinshasa so girls do not have to travel by taxi to get to school.  Claudine's vision is to begin 15 vocational training centers by April 2014.  I just had supper with the mission director, Jim Snyder, on Thursday last week.  They had just dedicated another center.  In five years they want to see 1,000 centers opened in Kinshasa being directed by women in the church who can teach what they know already.

Personally, I like this dress and would like one made for me.

Reach Global, the American extension of the mission is hoping to team with the Tabitha Centers and send out teams to encourage the women serving in these centers.  They also are financially assisting to start the programs.
If you are interested in assisting with this ministry to can receive more information by contacting

Ready to get to work!

Reach Global
901 E 78^th St., Minneapolis, MN  55420
You can follow this link to give a donation. Then follow the "give" link.  Then you can specify for the Tabitha Center Project #2200-5414.

Today, March 10, 2014, I went to visit the Tabitha Center again.  Claudine was there with several women to meet me and tell me about the center.  I took my friend Tasha and her daughter with me.  I really enjoyed talking with Claudine.  My Lingala has not improved over the last 10 years since I have been working so much with English speaking students or students learning English.  It was refreshing to speak Lingala with somebody from Tandala area again.

 Claudine was waiting to start their day with some other ladies when I arrived.  It looked like they were in between classes.  Two of the ladies that came had just finished up the classes with Claudine at the Bendal Center and were getting ready to do an internship in other neighborhoods. 

 It was nice to meet Claudine face to face finally.  We are still getting to know each other and hope to spend some time with some English lessons in the near future.

 Just recently the Bendal Tabitha Center started teaching the women how to do hair.  This will give the women another vocation to earn money for their families. 

 Yes, we drove my truck to the center.  I still appreciate those who gave so that I could have this truck to get around in Kinshasa.  I also greatly appreciate my husband who keeps it repaired and in shape.

Adah and I got to pose with the ladies.

Tasha and I plan to go back with our fabric to ask the Tabitha Center to help us with our sewing.
For a most recent update on the Tabitha Center click on this link: Installation #9 and #10.

A Stranger in the House

Our electric cabinet which I have gotten to know quite well.

I woke up this morning to a nice cool bedroom, the electricity had stayed on all night and the air-conditioner worked great.  The alarm went off at 5:30 a.m. and I worked at getting myself to rise so I could have some quiet time before my daughter had to get up.  Only I walked into a living room and there was humidity soaking itself everywhere so that even the chair I sat in felt a little damp.  As I sat down to enjoy my few minutes alone I noticed the electricity going on and off.  Apparently, one of the electrical phases coming into the house was quite unstable and so I went to check the voltage in the electric box.  There wasn't much I could do, or so I thought with my groggy head.  So I went back inside without adjusting anything only to happen upon A CAT FIGHT IN MY LIVING ROOM.  I forgot to lock the cat's window in the laundry room last night and a stray cat had wandered in.  Of course I yelled, "What are you doing my house."  Then thought, "I probably woke up my daughter".  The stray went berserk and ran for the kitchen only to find the laundry room window shut (a breeze must have blown it shut) and he proceeded to jump 8 feet in the air next to every window to find a way out.  I stayed clear and went to the front door and opened it wide then headed down the hallway to try to maneuver the cat out.  When I came out of the second door of the hallway the cat had disappeared.  I wasn't sure if it had gotten scared and crouched down in a corner somewhere or if it had seen the front door and fled out.  Our cat was still jumpy so we sort of watched each other as I had my quiet time.  Before long the electricity went out completely.  My daughter appeared a few minutes later, ready to face the day and wasn't quite ready to believe me when I said I wasn't sure if there was a stray cat in the house still.  We did another sweep on the house and decided that all was clear and continued on with a mostly peaceful morning.

 When electricity comes and goes it actually can damage our appliances. This reminds me of my need to stay connected to Jesus. While I believe Jesus only works for the good in my life, my unfaithfulness, whether it be neglecting prayer, or not studying the Bible, or focusing on the wrong things can be damaging to my life.  Jesus said, "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15: 5 Jesus is my source of strength.  Without Him I can do nothing.  I need to stay connected in every way to Him and not let any area slack off.

Resting peacefully

Also the cat made me think of being invaded by a robber.  Jesus says in John 10: 1 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep".  The cat did not come in the front door, or the side door but sneaked in through a window.  I noticed later that my cat's dish was licked quite clean by the stranger.  Then when the stranger was discovered he began to wreck havoc in my house. I believe Merry, my cat, was quite relieved when I discovered the stranger and made him leave.  Often I allow wrong thoughts into my life that become strongholds that cause destruction.  We are told in II Corinthians 10:5 "We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive in obedience to Christ."  When I saw that strange cat in my house I rose up against it and it fled.  Merry, my "faithful" cat, remained and rests peacefully in my house each day watching for any rodents that seek to invade.  So I must guard against wrong thoughts and my wrong thoughts must flee so that "the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension can guard my  heart and my mind in Christ Jesus." Phil.4:6