Archive for the ‘Patrice Miles’ Category

Gently Used

Posted: February 2, 2015 by Patrice Miles in C.A.R.E. Africa, Egbe, Egbe Nigeria, Miles In Missions, Missionaries, Nigeria, Patrice Miles, People of Egbe
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airport18 months ago our family left the United States and landed on Nigerian soil. God has gently used us to help host over 100 construction and medical volunteers, say good bye to three Samaritan Purse pioneer missionaries, say hello to 7 new long term missionary families, completed work on a new pharmacy, OR, CSR, men’s ward, maternity, X-ray, laundry, 3 missionary houses, 5 containers unloaded, started a new guesthouse and  a Wednesday Women’s Fellowship group. C.A.R.E. Africa came alive and over 20 children are in school now, 5 women are learning a trade and 2 women were helped to start a business. From rashes, Mosquitos, Lenny malaria x5 and Cason x2, cotta (Nigerian cold), dog dying, 110 degree temperatures, Mosquitos, bombs in JOS and Abuja, tearful goodbyes, stomach problems, Mosquitos, bank robbery and shootings, DSC_0239road robbers, Mosquitos, nail boys, Ebola, hospital gates stormed, fighting and did I mention Mosquitos, we survived.  Everything was completed giving God the glory and lives have been changed and his kingdom has grown. He gives us small peeks every now and then of his big picture for Egbe Nigeria through open doors in ministry, national workers voices of gratitude, lives given to Christ, relationships built with Nigerian leaders, miracles at the hospital and deeper relationships with other missionaries . These small glimpses keep us going in a culture that is not our own.

DSC_0020We will be home in less than week and we are so excited! We have been gently used and God knew when this date was being planned that we would need this time with friends and family to refuel. While we are home we need your help. In less than a month we need to collect a lot of items to take back to Egbe. Can you look around your house and see if you have any of these gently used items that you could donate to the people of Egbe.

 

CareAfrica_logo_v1_tag2_flat-01Boys items for ages 12-16
-Clothes
-Soccer wear
-Soccer cleats
-White Socks and Boxer Briefs
-Sandals, flip flops, tennis shoes.
-Belts
Girls items for ages 13-16
-Everyday dresses, skirts, shirts
-Sandals, flip flops and dress shoes
-White Socks
Back packs
Wrist Watches
Laptops
Tablets
Oxford Dictionaries

We would also like to get some t-shirts printed for C.A.R.E. Africa if anyone knows of an affordable place. Contact me at patrice.miles@sim.org if you have any of these gently used items you would like to donate. Or if you would like to donate directly to our ministry click Miles In Missions, missionary #040380.

C.A.R.E. Africa Etsy Store

Posted: December 14, 2014 by Patrice Miles in C.A.R.E. Africa, Egbe, Egbe Nigeria, Miles In Missions, Nigeria, Patrice Miles, People of Egbe
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10408141_1716672908556954_5092199233753583452_nC.A.R.E. Africa’s Etsy Store is up and running! https://www.etsy.com/shop/CAREafrica Almost all of the items have made their way back to Louisville, Kentucky and are waiting to be shipped out to a new home.

Everything is hand made in Egbe, Nigeria. There are four beautiful girls that make our beaded jewelry. Seun, who is a single mother. Remi, is a widow with 3 children. Felicia, is a young single girl trying to make ends meet. Last but least is our newest addition Abigail who is also a single girl.

10636854_1726048147619430_8165663666469171368_oAll our cow horn, coconut and calabash items are currently made by Emma. He is in the process of training the Home Care boys on how to make these amazing pieces. The cow horn is from Fulani cows. The calabash is taken from trees in Egbe and dried and then cut into pieces for earrings. The coconut is taken from the Miles kitchen. We eat a lot of coconut so we have a lot of coconut shells J

DSC_0571A few different people in Egbe sow the bags and purses. Toyin, is an orphan and he also does a lot of the tailoring for the men on the compound. Janet, who is our compound seamstress, has an apprenticeship program. She trains women over the period of a year how to sew. These women in training sew our bags for us currently. Gift who is our only member in our seamstress program is a widow with 4 children. She is learning at Janet’s 3 days a week and then comes to CARE Africa on Saturdays to sew our new patchwork material for the purses.

All of these children of God plus our Home Care kids come together every Saturday to work on the items for the Etsy store while also spending time in God’s word. All of the members are paid the moment they complete an item so they can support themselves throughout the week. We then send the items back to the US through visitors that come to Egbe. Once they arrive in our hometown Louisville, KY, my friend Diana Beville puts them on the Etsy store. Once an item is purchased she ships it to wherever it needs to go.

10676221_1709188602638718_4128179935287055497_nPlease support the women, men and children in our program by purchasing some of the items as gifts for Christmas or for yourselves. All items will reach you before Christmas. Please pray for our store to find a place in Egbe too. We will be testing the Nigerian market at the end of January at an annual ECWA conference. We need your prayers.

Christmas or for yourselves. All items will reach you before Christmas. Please pray for our store to find a place in Egbe too. We will be testing the Nigerian market at the end of January at an annual ECWA conference. We need your prayers.

Meet Iyabo, a F$lani Business Women

Posted: December 6, 2014 by Patrice Miles in C.A.R.E. Africa, Egbe, Egbe Nigeria, Miles In Missions, Patrice Miles, People of Egbe, Prayer
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Adamo in School

Meet Iyabo, a F$lani business women. Two of her daughters happened to be at a football match and met Emma, my partner with C.A.R.E. Africa. When C.A.R.E. Africa started, Emma remembered one of the girls, Adamo, We registered her in our home care program. Adamo and her family are a Yuroba F$lani family. The Father has many wives and is in the bush with the cows. He rarely visits. When he does come home there is no support given to the family. With 5 children to take care of, Iyabo, like many abandoned mothers, is struggling.

Picture Inventory Spreadsheet

Picture Inventory Spreadsheet

Iyabo has a store, but it doesn’t provide the income to sustain her family. We wanted to help her but in a way that would not hurt her later. We wanted something sustainable. We sat down and talked about what product she is selling and what product she is not. We quickly analyzed her business and found there were several items she wasn’t making any money on. There was also many that she was making great money on. We got rid of the non money making product and focused on what was moving . The next step was to teach her how to keep inventory and track expenses and income.

Emma explaining how to use the spreadsheet.

Emma explaining how to use the spreadsheet.

This was a lot harder as she does not know how to read. We came up with an inventory in an excel spreadsheet with pictures. Once we showed her the chart and how to use it, she was very excited and said no problem. We will be starting week one with her on Monday. I am so excited to see what happens. I am sure that we will find product she said moves doesn’t. There will probably be mistakes in the inventory count, but we will tweak it every week until we find out what works and what doesn’t. I never thought I would be teaching business in Africa but God did. He prepared me through running my husbands construction business and my own real estate business. Now I get to use those skills to watch his kingdom grow.

Iyabo and her store.

Iyabo and her store.

Please pray for Iyabo and her family to come to know Christ. Pray for God’s wisdom with C.A.R.E. Africa on how to help the people of Egbe, Nigeria.

C.A.R.E. Africa

Posted: October 17, 2014 by Patrice Miles in Egbe, Miles In Missions, Patrice Miles, Prayer
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2What is C.A.R.E. Africa? Children At Risk Empowered! When I arrived in Egbe over a year ago, I immediately fell in love with the women in the Guesthouse kitchen. These amazing women, who are now my best friends, always carried a smile and joy in their hearts. Their stories however, would not bring a smile to your face or joy to your heart. Most of them are abandoned mothers who have been abused in one form or another. Their stories are a re-occurring theme I have found with women in Egbe.

This love for my girls in the kitchen and their children put a burden on my heart for abandoned mothers. How could I help empower them? How could I help them to walk closer with the Lord? How could I help and not hurt their situation so they can send their children to school and put food in their mouths. I was overwhelmed with the amount of women and children I came in contact with that have been abandoned in Egbe. I just couldn’t stand by and watch. “God help me to help them!” I prayed for many months. I became frustrated when my desires to help were not met with a clear plan from God. Why was he not helping me to help them. I prayed for God to bring someone to me to help. I needed a local person to this culture that shared the same vision. Someone that could be trusted and that was known in the community. Nothing happened and no one came for months. I continued to pray and he finally answered my prayer with Emmanuel Salako. (Emma) Screen Shot 2014-10-16 at 8.00.23 PM

Emma and I met when we first arrived in Egbe in 2013. He shortly left for school and I heard from him every now and then through phone calls and Facebook. When he returned he came to greet us but only Lenny was home. Lenny asked him how school had been and Emma began to share his vision for orphans and widows in Egbe. Lenny said “Wait! My wife has to hear this.” Once I arrived home I could not believe what I was hearing. Emma’s vision was inline with everything I had journaled and written down for the past 6 months. There were so many similarities that it gave me goose bumps. We agreed to start slow and small and see what God would do. DSC_0449

I am proud to announce C.A.R.E. Africa to you today. Together Emma and I are God’s hands and feet in Egbe. We meet weekly together to explore new opportunities to spread God’s word through empowering needy women and children. We currently have a bead making program that meets on Saturdays. Women come for a 30 minute devotion and then learn the trade of bead making and best business practices. We also have a home care program for orphans. Through a scholarship to school, weekly accountability, tutoring and mentoring of the entire family orphans are able to remain in the home of a family member. Through discipleship and education we are empowering God’s children in Egbe. As we venture down uncharted territory we need your prayers. Please click C.A.R.E. to email me (Patrice) to become one of our prayer partners. We need your prayers for wisdom, local leaders to join us and finances. You can also follow us on our new Facebook page at www.facebook.com/careafrica.

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1 Year Furlough

Posted: August 9, 2014 by Patrice Miles in Lenny Miles, Miles In Missions, Patrice Miles, SIM
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milesSoon my family and I will be heading out on our one year furlough. Four months ago when my husband started planning this, I wasn’t that excited. I love Egbe so much that I didn’t feel like all the work to plan and leave was worth it.

Traveling out of Egbe isn’t so easy. The first battle is planning your trip through limited internet access, blocked websites and emails because we live in Nigeria and bad phone service. Once that is planned then you have to book tickets trying to use points so we can travel for close to Free.  Then plan your 8hr drive to the airport that will be an exhausting venture for our family. Both Lenny and I have roles and duties in Egbe that have to be delegated out to other Missionaries and national staff. We have to plan for the care of our dogs, cats, house, yard etc. and pack our entire family for different climates than we are used to. Sometimes you need a furlough just from planning your furlough…haha!

workAfter all this planning we are less than two weeks from our furlough and I am so glad my husband made us do it. We are exhausted from the past year of work. Just in the past two months alone we have prepared 5 new missionary houses, oriented 6 new Missionaires to Egbe living, hosted over 24 volunteers, moved into the new OPD, moved CSR, put a facelift on maternity, built a new guardhouse and gate and I am forgetting so much more as the past two months is a blur. Needless to say our family needs this time together on furlough. So why do I feel so guilty for taking it?

kids 3As I think about the comfort and rest that this furlough will give my family, I also think of so many I leave behind that can barely afford to buy food and water.  How do I not feel guilty? When our supporters see our pictures on Facebook and wonder if we are using their hard earned money to play abroad, how do I enjoy my time away? These are the thoughts and feelings I battle with as we prepare to leave.

towerMark 6:31 Then because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them. “Come with me by yourselves to a quite place and get some rest” This verse reminded me that even Jesus and his disciples needed to get away from their ministry to rest. We all need rest. So many of us go go go no matter what country we live in. When we finally sit down we feel guilty because there is still so much work to do. I have come to the conclusion that I am good to no one without rest. When you burn the candle at both ends it burns out so much quicker. When you live were you work you have to leave to find rest.

We are excited to find rest in Europe in less than two weeks. I hope you will enjoy our pictures on Facebook as we find rest in multiple SIM guesthouses. I pray you will celebrate with us as we get to spend time alone with God and our children as we re-energize for another year in Egbe!

Unanswered Questions

Posted: January 16, 2014 by Patrice Miles in Egbe, Egbe Nigeria, Lenny Miles, Miles In Missions, Nigeria, Patrice Miles
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300526_10151588761048808_824620772_nI will never forget my melt down on my Fathers deck a few weeks before leaving for Nigeria. The unanswered questions were starting to create anxiousness throughout my entire being. My Dad asked me, “Do you need your questions answered or do you just not trust that God knows what he is doing and will take care of you?” I had to really do a basement trip on this core issue and discovered I didn’t trust him. I had always taken care of myself. This time I couldn’t prepare, I couldn’t control, I couldn’t even envision what was coming because I had never even been to Egbe. Once I repented of this sin and handed it over to God a Peace came over me and the anxiousness went away. My white knuckled grip of everything familiar loosened and I am enjoying the ride. The funny thing was, once I said yes to him and walked through the door, all those unanswered question were answered.

Riyom Attack that we drove through about 30 minutes prior to the attack.

Riyom Attack that we drove through about 30 minutes prior to the attack.

Some of my questions were;
1. Will we be safe, Nigeria has a lot of unrest?
2. Will my children have friends, there are no other families there?
3. Will Lenny and I be lonely, there is only 3 Missionaires there?
4. What will I (Patrice) do all day?
5. What will we eat and will we like it?

1. Will be safe? I continue to see Gods hedge of protection around us through snake encounters, whalla in the town, nail boys on the road and close encounters of unrest as we travel to and from the North. Our family is at peace about his protection here.  We almost forget sometimes we are in 1517811_10152091727568808_1075165954_oNigeria.

2. Will my children have friends? Haha…I laugh at this one. Everyday you can look out the window and see children trekking to my house. It amazes me how my kids have adjusted thier play to Nigerian style and have so much patience and grace for these kids. They love being teachers and showing the kids new things to do and play. They even have a “Nigerian Playground” as Cason calls it where they set up chairs and play make believe and ride bikes.

3. Will Lenny and I be lonely? God has blown us away with this one. See who is 1543995_10100999457236778_536409240_ncoming in this picture! We are so excited to introduce you to the Egbeites as they are calling themselves. In less than 6 months we will have a medical director, surgeon, hospital administrator, 2 nurses, family physician, elementary teacher, fire fighter, mait manager and a music teacher. Wow and I thought we would be lonely!

4. What will I, Patrice, do all day? Another one to laugh at as I was worried I was going to be bored. As compound manager, volunteer coordinator, guesthouse manager, school teacher, wife and friend….there is never a dull moment. I still ask that you pray for God to reveal ministry opportunities to me. We get glimpses here an there of how he is using us in the community but I know he has something more in store then the above job descriptions.

793769_265576223593621_1259991415_o5. What will we eat and will we like it? I love, love, love Nigerian food. I miss our vegetables but Lenny and I love the food. Spicy red sauce with meat over rice and sprinkled with ground nuts, Jollof rice with chicken mixed with cabbage, tomato, cucumber and ranch dressing is like Nigerian Qudoba, Oh and pounded Yam with Egusi soup I cannot even explain the deliciousness and last but not least I dream of Duro’s sugar cookies that she makes….they are amazing! The kids….well what kid likes food unless it is coated in sugar. They eat but it’s the same as it was in the US….every meal is a battle…some things don’t change no matter where you live.

Nail Boys

Posted: December 10, 2013 by Patrice Miles in Miles In Missions, Nigeria, Patrice Miles
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Screen Shot 2013-12-07 at 8.31.44 AMMy excitement rose as I boarded our new bus with reclining seats to head to my new favorite place, Shoprite in Illorin. After Thanksgiving week without my US family I was needing something fun to do. My list was complete of everything I would be purchasing. Comfort foods from home like chips, lunch meat, hamburger, doughnuts and so much more. We started our 2 hour journey with gallops (potholes) galore. Swaying from one side of the bus to the other anticipating the better roads ahead and then there they were…. Nail boys. Nail boys specialize in creating eight-foot lengths of 4 x 4s studded with spikes. They set up roadblocks in order to collect “taxes” from hapless travelers. No big deal, we had the paperwork to show we had paid our dues for the year.

new bus“Nice new bus”, was the first words out of the leaders mouth when we stopped. After our driver talked to him in Yoruba for several minutes I could tell by his tone that things weren’t going well. Seems we were missing a paper and the cost was #28,000 ($170 US). Were we missing a paper, maybe….but did it cost #28,000?…NO! Oh and guess what….you cannot turn around and go home or go forward to Illorin until you pay. Lets just say that this ended the honeymoon stage they talked about in our cross cultural training for me.

Ayo our driver was amazing. We all started making calls for someone to rescue us. The network was horrible were we were positioned so every caller barely understood us and we barely understood them. The entire team back at the hospital was on the phone with Cheifs of Egbe, Chairmens, and all other influential people they could call. After four hours of sitting in the bus on the side of the road in the bush, someone got a hold of the nail boys boss and our fee was reduced to #5000. By this time it was too late to go to Illorin and we were all exhausted, so we returned home.

Screen Shot 2013-12-07 at 8.41.58 AMDuring this adventure I was never scared, just frustrated. I have seen God cancel my plans many times. I have always felt he was protecting me from something so much bigger than my current obstacle. I have never had a problem resting in the truth that His ways are not my ways. Where I struggled, was the fact that this is my life now. My life is different now, not right, not wrong just different. My relationships with people are different now, not right, not wrong, just different. My food is so different now, not right, not wrong just different (I think some nutritionalists might disagree..HAHA)

crossDuring my mourning of everything familiar the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said “Patrice…don’t forget about me…I’m not different. I am the same today and tomorrow as I was yesterday. I am the same in the US and in Nigeria. My relationship with you has not changed. I still love you and have a plan for your life.” This truth hit me hard and tears filled my eyes. I was sad that God was the only thing familiar to me now, but also comforted by his words. He is all I need and in Nigeria I am truly learning the meaning of that! He is right, he is not wrong and he is not different, he is God. He is all you need! I pray you can find rest in that today with me.

Mission Trips to Africa

Posted: November 4, 2013 by Patrice Miles in Egbe Nigeria, H.E.L.P., Miles In Missions, Mission Trips, Patrice Miles
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Jamaica Mission TripA little over a year ago my life was changed by going on my first mission trip to Jamaica. It seemed that I heard God speaking so clearly when my cell phone was off,  I had no Internet, and I had no agenda for the day. I write to you today because I am excited about the possibility of leading mission trips to Egbe, Nigeria. Having this opportunity to  watch God work in peoples lives is so exciting!

Samaritans Purse VolunteersCurrently, Samaritans Purse is the main contributor to U.S. visitors in Egbe. These volunteers come every two weeks with construction skills that they use to help the revitalization project. In addition to the construction project, we now have the desire to start hosting large teams to do ministry inside and outside of the hospital walls.

Egbe TeamI know running large teams every month could be stressful on myself, but I envision so many benefits from it as well. The opportunity to see U.S. lives changed by a new outlook on life, ministries in Egbe helped, people’s eyes opened to the hospital and its needs would be tremendously gratifying. I see all the benefits, but am in prayer to see if it is Gods will. Does he want this? I will be spending a lot of time putting it all together. Things like forms, schedules, costs, ministry options, etc. still need to be created. I will be dependent on God’s help to put all the pieces together because I cannot make this happen on my own. I feel like a little girl who is showing her Daddy a picture that she has drawn and then waiting for him to tell her how beautiful it is while putting it on the fridge.

Egbe Volunteers I have high expectations of myself and admittedly, I can sometimes take on too much. I am sure there are many of you reading this that understand my pain. God has saved me from myself many times by not giving me what I want. I am thankful for that when I look back and see how he saved me from something that would have overwhelmed me or not worked out, but in that moment it was hard to be thankful. His will is always better than mine and it may or may not include my desire to see U.S. teams meet the beautiful people of Egbe. I am just going to have to wait and see. Lets all together watch and see what he does….. lets watch him show up and show off however that looks! How about you? Are you excited to see God show up and show off in your life no matter how that looks? If you have any interest in coming on a mission trip to Africa to serve the people of Egbe, no matter what your skill set is, click Egbe to email me.

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