2011-12 USA Tour Schedule

Listed below is our travel schedule for our trip to the states:

October 26          Arrive into LAX (Los Angeles); drive to Visalia
see Harold’s Parents, Derrill and Betty Roberts

October 30          (Sunday) Sierra Bible Church, Sonora, CA

November 1-4       Sonora growth groups; stay at Benning's house  

November 6-12     (Sunday)  Lodi Baptist Church, Lodi, CA; preach and
meet with Elders

November 13-18   (Sunday)  Speak at Sierra Bible Church, Sonora, CA;
stay at Benning's house

November 20-23   (Sunday) Little Country Church, Redding, CA

November 24       Thanksgiving at Coni's mom’s house (Dixie), Cottonwood, CA

November 25-29   (Sunday) Drive to Oregon; Powell Butte Church, Powell
Butte, OR; Chris & Debbi Blair

November 30       See Darrel Knepper (Harold's brother) in Portland, OR

December 3-5      (Sunday)  Abundant Life Christian Church, Parkrose
Campus, Portland, OR; Greg & Shawn Strannigan

December 5 - 20   Moses in Los Angeles, CA (Derek\Mel Hansen);
Dismas\Sylvester in Gilroy, CA (Jim/Julie Hansen)

December 6-14     (Sunday) Harold & Coni to Vancouver, Canada; stay
with Josh\Tami; meet with Church leaders

December 21-28     Christmas with family

December 29-30   Meet with Casey Finch and 2 churches in Iowa

January 1-5          (Sunday) Federated Fellowship, Pella, IA; Bible
study groups

January 6-11        (Sunday) Evangelical Free Church, Bozeman, MT
(Ramsey’s church) OR Oh-Be-Joyful Church, Crested Butte, CO

January 13           Lifequest Church, Redlands, CA

January 14           Calvary Chapel, San Diego, CA

January 15          (Sunday) Ecclesia Church, Hollywood, CA; Joseph Barkley

January 16-21      Available for midweek Bible studies and home visits
in Southern CA

January 22          (Sunday)  Kingsfield Church, Laguna Beach, CA

Januray 23-26      Available for midweek Bible studies and home visits
in Southern CA

January 27-30      (Sunday) New Life Christian Church, Santa Maria,
CA; (Scott and Janet McGee)

January 30-31      Turlock, CA; Faddis family

February 5-11       (Missions fair)  WOW week at Central Christian
Church, San Jose, CA

February 8            Calvary Chapel, Santa Cruz, CA; speak and meet
with new leadership

February 11-15     (Sunday) South Valley Community Church & Incarnate
Faith church, Gilroy, CA (Hansen)

February 16-19     (Sunday)  Disciples Church, Folsom, CA; (Suehowicz family)

February 20          Adventure Christian Church, Rocklin, CA;
missions board and leaders meeting

February 21-24     William Jessup University, Rocklin CA; Speak at
Chapel\Classes; visit Jessup families

February 26         (Sunday) Hanford Church, Hanford, CA; Granger’s home

February 27-28     Mom and Dad Knepper, Visalia, CA

February 29          Fly HOME to Tanzania!!! Los Angeles, CA;  Pray for us

What a schedule --  23 churches, 1 University, and 100’s of homes!

Thank you for inviting us to stay in your home, speak with your church
or share with your Bible Study group. There are a few days open, so
please Facebook or email us at knepperstz@gmail.com.  We would LOVE to
come and visit you as well. Also, please remember to let us know if
you would like us to bring handmade crafts (as seen in the June
newsletter) to sell.  You will enjoy meeting Moses, Dismas and
Sylvester, 3 of the main leaders in Hope of the Nations. Their
testimonies are fascinating.  Hearing all God is doing through their
lives is such a blessing.  Moses is the Director for all 17 Kids
Clubs\Camps, Dismas is the lead Pastor for H of N 2 new Churches,
Sylvester is Youth\ Orphans Pastor, and Government laision for H of N.
 They will have lots of great stories to share.


You ask how can all of the leaders be gone this long?  We do have some
very good leadership that is staying at home to hold down the fort and
keep the ministries going.  All 3 men have trained up people in their
different areas of ministry.

With internet,  we are able to keep in contact on a daily basis.
Thank you Jesus for Skype!
Please pray with us and for us that our time in the US will be fruitful.

In HIM, Coni Knepper and all of Hope of the Nations staff in Kigoma, Tanzania

FIRST PARENTS’ NIGHT AT PRESCHOOL

Our teachers worked so hard all week preparing their classrooms for the guests to arrive. 

The children were so excited to see their work hanging on the walls.  They, too, had worked hard memorizing verses to share and songs to sing in English.

Each child made a “Book about ME” to take home.  The book included their height, weight, what they want to be when they grow, up etc.  The children had never been on a scale before nor owned a picture of themselves.  It was fun to see their smiles as they finished up the ME books.  Drivers, moms, teachers, doctors and pilots were the top choices for their future careers. Children are never asked these kinds of questions.

35 adults arrived and 42 of the 44 students!  We all were very pleased to see so many take an interest in what the children have been learning.  All the teachers were prepared to share.  They even ended up teaching the adults.  Many of the adults now are saying,  “We want to learn English so we can understand the children.”  We hope to start an English night class for the adults, so keep it in your prayers please.  

After the program and several songs, including  “Jesus loves the little children,”    “Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes” and “The B.I.B.L.E,” each adult visited the classrooms.  Seeing their faces light up with wonder was such a treat.  The Gospel was shared giving the Muslim families once again something to think about before going home. 

Our students are the children that used to take the air out of our tires, steal from the neighborhood and basically be out of control.  They were the children that no one really wanted.   Now they are learning to respect others and themselves, to read and write and even speak English.  Very few of them have parents but neighbors and grandparents showed up!  

There is always a culture clash – We asked the adults after the program to pick up their sodas and go visit the classrooms.  They all sat there with smiles and laughter.  They had never heard of walking around drinking soda or eating foods.  (Us strange Americans and our “eat on the run” traditions!)   Tanzanian people would NEVER eat in a car, on the road or anywhere else but sitting down in their home.  Family time, no matter how distant, is still very important to them.  We all can learn something.

Two visitors from the states painted the Bible Classroom.  Adam and Eve, Noah, the open tomb and a beautiful rainbow!  We then hung stars from the ceiling with each child’s name on it. The focus that night was each child is a star.  God loves the little children, all the children of the World.

Thank you for your prayers for our preschool.  It was a wonderful evening. 



Rose and Hana Grace story

Dear Friends,

Yesterday was a tough day - Hana Grace is in the Arms of Jesus. Some of you remember Mama Rose. She came to the training center in Kamala about 2 yrs ago. She was 9 months pregnant and drunk at the time. The next day we shared the Love of Jesus with her and she received Jesus as her Lord and Savior!

At the time, her birth name was Problem, however immediately God renamed her Rose, which is what she goes by now. Rose delivered a healthy little girl who we had the privilege to name Hana Grace. Below is a picture of Rose immediately following her baptism. Rose has been attending our church service in Kamala and making jewelry with other mamas to make a living. Just last month, an old boy friend showed up and beat her up badly, which lead to her taking up drinking again for a short time.

During all of this, Hana Grace had gotten malaria. Last week Hana was admitted into the hospital for the 3rd time in a month, but this time she did not get to come home to her mama Rose. Hana Grace is now in the arms of Jesus.

We buried little Hana Grace yesterday. With tears I write this letter and ask you to please pray for Rose. She has no blood-related family, but she has Jesus and us here at Hope of the Nations. Hana’s funeral was the first Christian funeral in Kamala and the first funeral for Kamala Church pastors to perform.

Dismas, Peace, Harold and I all shared the HOPE we have in Jesus and how one day we WILL SEE Hana again. That Jesus loves the little Children and that when HIS arms stretched out on that cross it was for everyone. HIS arms now were wrapped around little Hana Grace.

There were many Muslims and non-believers at the service, which was held under a few trees outside Rose’s little mud room. Some laughed, while others sat in amazement that we were not praying for the dead. There were no memorized prayers to Mary or Mohammad. There was no screaming out in anger. We sang songs of celebration and then some of us shared special memories of Hana and Rose together.

Our Hope of the Nations land cruiser carried Rose and the little pine wood coffin to the burial ground. There in the middle of some weeds was a fresh dug grave. It is the custom to scream and cry out for the dead as there is no hope. But yesterday people stood watching as many of us took shovels full of dirt and covered the little box. Dismas shared and then we covered the grave with hand picked flowers.

Mama Rose needs prayer. This could be a very tempting time for her to return to drinking. One of the other jewelry making mamas offered to have Rose come live with her and her family for the next 3 months. Just a few months ago she had treated Rose like someone beneath her. God is working!

The community is now calling Rose a celebrity because so many white people showed up and then actually did the funeral. Pray, as we want Jesus to be the one they turn to. The Gospel was shared and truth was heard; now we wait for HIS Spirit to work in their hearts.

With love in HIM, Coni and Harold

March Newsletter 2011

posted in the Newsletter section

Read "Stories of Hope"

posted in the NEWSLETTER section