Update from Don and Mary DeHart in British Columbia

Dear Nags Head family,

What a summer! Busyness came like a flood following the camps and our September holiday. NAIM had asked us to be part of a new department combining Recruiting, Summer Ministries Initiative and First Nations Partnership under one flag. At times it seemed like I'd been "pushing a rope" the past year. This enlarged vision will bring strength of several individuals to a combined effort as we move ahead in the good changes NAIM has in focus.

One of the initatives we are launching, we are calling Orientation Gatherings, long weekends in many areas gathering Native believers into long weekend experiences to invite them to look at NAIM and consider how they may wish to speak into and invite our partnership in their communites.

We just returned from a Talking Circle in Billings, Montana...very encouraged. The vision we hold in trust is beginning to draw God's people all over North America. We met Crow, Yakima, Lumi, Northern Cheyenne, Eastern Chippewa, and other First Nations people who love Jesus and want to bring their own people to Him. There were no "big people" there...just folks like us without fame or notoriety...but with a strong vision for Native people to take their rightful place in God's kingdom work.

So I wanted to share one story for your hearts. See link below.

Here is the story from Montana: http://www.ccci.org/ministries-and-locations/ministries/campus-ministry/native-american-students-two-worlds.htm

We hope to go home to Mt. Currie next week before NAIM's Operations Council and Staff Conference (Oct 20-28) and a trip to Vancouver Island for another Talking Circle, (Oct. 17) depending on my getting some overdue bases covered here in preparation for both. We've prayed much and wanted to be part of seeing the work at Sachteen move forward before snow. There is in place a workteam of local believers, Native and non-Native, planning to continue the infrastructure setting the Red Soul Rising camp on more solid footing October 15-17. I will have to leave Saturday afternoon in to make prepartation for the Talking Circle(actually from our perspective, it's a Listening Circle, as we gather with several trusted Native believers to gain their voice and vision in the direction we see God drawing the ministry we share, some are NAIM staff, others are not...yet).

We will be taking a team of 6 or 8 older youth from Chicago RSR Youth Connection to Mt. Currie in December for several days RSR follow-up and hopefully take as many older youth from Mt. Currie back to Chicago to spend Christmas and New Years with the families of the follow-up team, the Lord willing.

As well, NAIM has asked me to help assemble a team of 2 Native and a non-Native brother from New Mexico Navaho ministries to hold a series of Great Commission Workshops in different locations from Vancouver to Regina in early January into Spring 2011. These will be venued to gather Native and non-Native local believers into groups to to stir up and train local believers to reach the on 98% Native people in most communities who have yet to turn to Jesus.

So, there is lots on the plate, but following the vision God has sown in our hearts is joy beyond expression. At 63, I've never been so excited about minsitry.

Thank y'all for being who you are in our lives,
don and mary