I am just a little excited to announce that our new website for C.A.R.E. Africa is live! Thanks to one of my prayer partners, Angela Clevenger, telling me about www.VolunteerMatch.com, we have a new website that was FREE! It is still under constructions as we continue to make improvements. I just couldn’t wait any longer to tell everyone how great God is as this has been a prayer request for over two years. Visit www.iCareAfrica.org and please tell us what you think.
It’s been almost five years in Nigeria, almost one year in our new home, and I was feeling almost happy…..
At the beginning of the year, after the holidays, I started feeling very homesick, frustrated, hopeless, and angry. I have always been the glass is half full kind of person so these negative feelings were very foreign to me. I tried to shake them but they overpowered me.
Since moving to Jos from Egbe I had more time for marketing CARE Africa and Spring of Life Egbe, which I love. I have enjoyed building partnerships with other ministries in Jos that in turn were creating new opportunities for CARE Africa in Egbe. The school we are opening in Egbe happened because of a partnership with Foundations Academy in Jos. So much to be happy about- so why was I so discontent, frustrated and sad?
Since arriving in Jos, I have made a lot of connections, but no real relationships. I am talking about the kind of relationship where you can be your unaltered self and know you aren’t judged. Instead of doing the work of building new relationships- I turned to books. I love books! Books are not the problem. Disconnecting was the problem. I chose to stay detached by reading for hours and hours. I would escape to all types of wonderful places and stay there most evenings and weekends. Disconnecting was nice – I didn’t have to think about the loneliness.
Thankfully God intervened. It took time and discontent, but eventually that soft, faint voice penetrated my soul and stirred my ear. “Stop escaping, my daughter, to something that isn’t real and escape to Me”. But my disobedience continued on for months. I didn’t realize that the escaping was making me become more and more dissatisfied with all the genuine blessings surrounding me -this led to DEPRESSION!
Unfortunately I am stubborn and I have to get hit over the head with a hammer before I listen and obey. Remember the Foundations Academy Egbe school for our CARE Africa children? Well, I began to experience setbacks and doors being slammed in my face. I knew God put it on the heart of both Emma and I to start this school so why all the obstacles? I questioned God’s directive and almost walked away from it several times. “God why did you open this door if you didn’t want me to walk through it?” I got a swift answer Disobedience! “Daughter how can I trust you with something as big as a school when I can’t trust you to be obedient in something as small as putting down your books?” Ouch! The truth hurts! I do not enjoy pain and suffering so I surrendered my books and repented. “Sorry Daddy for not listening to you. Please forgive me. I’m listening now”.
I felt like a new person. My sense of joy and contentment was restored. Doors started opening in unbelievable ways in my ministry. Not to say I still don’t have moments of homesickness and loneliness, but I have a renewed sense of peace that transcends all understanding.
I almost missed a great opportunity because of disobedience. I almost traded what is genuine, real, and true for something that wasn’t. Almost, but not quite.
Please continue in your prayers for our Foundations Academy Egbe school and if you are interested in helping us you can pray and or donate at give.icareafrica.org
God bless you this day with what is real, genuine, and true.
2014: First set of children at local school.
When C.A.R.E. Africa started we became aware that many of our children were failing classes at their local school. We made the decision to move our children to a better private school. Two years later we hired teachers to provide special tutoring and lessons. We even pulled some of our children out of school and provided them with one-on-one teaching. We made the hard decision to have some of our children repeat the grade they were failing. After all our efforts we still had children who could not read, do basic writing and were completing math at a very low level. It became evident that we needed to start our own school where we could make certain our children receive the education they so deserve.
2017: First Set of Children at C.A.R.E. Center
We are excited to announce that in September of 2018 we will open Foundations Academy Egbe. This school will be a partnership with Foundations Academy in Jos, Nigeria. Foundations Academy was founded by a Nigerian, Bayo Oyebade and his American wife, Mary Beth. Their initial ministry to people living with HIV/AIDS led them to orphan care and with Mary Beth’s teaching background, she quickly realized the need for a better school for their orphans. Foundations Academy opened its doors in 2010 and with their reputation for excellence, it has grown to two locations. Our school in Egbe will become the third Foundations Academy.
This September we will start classes with 30 C.A.R.E. Africa primary age children. We will open our nursery level to the community, but we want to ensure our school has a solid foundation before we open the other grade levels to the public. This means we will not have the income from school fees to help offset costs for the first year. We need to raise $7,000 for our start-up costs and $12,000 for one year of operating costs. We have a lot of work to do to get the Center ready by September. All our classrooms need repair work, paint and decor. We need books for our library, student desks, teacher desks, computers, teaching materials, whiteboards, musical instruments, art supplies, ceiling fans, lights, water, fuel for the generator, training for our teachers, a playground, and an industrial printer in addition to so much more.
Please invest in the future of these children by helping us meet our goal of $19,000. Click on Foundations Academy Egbe to be redirected to our fundraising campaign page for the school and donate today. We believe in education and want our children to become the best they can be. Your prayers and support are needed. We look forward to hearing from you.
2018: The beginning of Foundations Academy Egbe. Starting from the left Samson (F.A. Jos Consultant), Marybeth (F.A. Founder), Tofunmi (C.A.R.E. Ops Mgr), Emma (C.A.R.E. Founder and CEO), Patrice (C.A.R.E. Africa Founder and Marketting Mgr)
Hiraeth: a Welsh word for homesickness (or nostalgia)
(n.) a homesickness for a home to which you cannot return, a home which maybe never was; the grief for the lost places of your past.
I don’t recall where I saw this picture but I saved it on Pinterest. Lately, I have been feeling Hiraeth as most missionaries do. I sometimes wish I lived like the missionaries of the 40’s . They didn’t have Facebook, email or international calling plans. Seeing pictures of family get togethers on Facebook, receiving emails from friends about their life back home and navigating the six hour difference to talk to your family on the phone – it is always exciting, but it is also depressing.
I wonder if missionaries of the 40’s missed their passport country as much as I seem too? They never knew if someone was sick or died or if there was a birth in the family until long after it happened. Is it better to immediately see and hear what you are missing out on or to not know at all?
I feel like you can’t truly connect with your host country unless you completely disconnect with your passport country. But it can feel like you are turning your back on everyone you love and care about. Where is the middle ground?
Lately, I have been going through old pictures online trying to categorize them. I stumbled across a file that had pictures of the annual Polsgrove family trip to Gatlinburg. I remember how every trip resulted in a Polsgrove male breaking or wrecking something or offending someone. There were pictures of the five Christmas’s or the five hundred birthdays we attended every year due to our big, happy, dysfunctional family. I remember how Lenny and I complained about the stress it created and we couldn’t wait to get away from all the busyness and family whalla (problems).
Now as I look at each picture I wish I could have those annoying times back. I crave the family get together where someone offends someone else. I miss the chaos of attending three different birthday parties in one weekend. It feels strange to look at pictures of a life and a home that no longer exist and could never be the same if we ever returned- and it grieves me.
I grieve the loss of relationship with nieces and nephews that will not know who I am. I grieve not being there to pray with a friend and hug them when they are going through tough times. I miss those deep relationships where a friend knows when you are not being your true self.
So what do I do? I wish I could say I have the answer but I don’t. I DO know God has called me to serve in Nigeria. However, when times get tough, when I feel lonely or when I long for the easier life …. my thoughts turn toward my old home and I grieve. I know that grieving is normal. I ask God to help me remember that I am his daughter in Nigeria and I am not missing out, but it is one thing to say it and another thing to really feel and believe it! Pray for God to help me not just say that I believe in His purposes for my life but that I believe and feel it with my entire being! I am sure my feelings are no different than some of you reading this email who have families living miles apart or 
maybe your families ties have been broken and you miss those better times. I hope this blog encourages you to know you are not alone and that your fellow sister in Christ completely understands. Our feelings don’t mean we are weak or incapable but that we are human. We are also daughters and sons of the Most High and He is our one true home!
Isaiah 43:18-19 Forget the former things; do not dwell in the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. (NIV)
Last fall, when taking my mother to the Abuja airport, I found I could not accompany her to the departure area. I was told to go talk to the front desk. What started out as an obstacle became a gift from God – I call him my “Airport Angel.” I found him at the front desk. He took me to see his Oga (boss) to get permission. The young man spoke to his Oga quickly who waved us on. I guess that was our approval?!
It is at this point that I knew I had found an “Airport Angel”. This young man took over and physically navigated my mom and I through airport protocol which included signing in a book, answering customs officers questions, weighing of baggage, completing custom and immigrations forms, checking in at the airline carrier, and he walked us to my mom’s gate! My “Airport Angel” told me to stay with my mom as long as I wanted and he would check back on me. When it was time to leave he told me if I ever needed this service for any of my arriving or departing visitors that I could call him directly.
The next week I had an inbound visitor so I called my “Airport Angel”. He met my guest at the immigration window with a cart for her baggage and personally escorted her through customs and out to the parking lot. I continue to call upon my “Airport Angel” who greets my guests with a smile no matter what time of day or night.
Recently my “Airport Angel” discovered I was a missionary. It was then that he shared his story of being orphaned at age 10 and how missionaries (Rita Ashwerzenbager, Terisita and Edith) in Kaduna took him in and made sure he received an education. My “Airport Angel” says he was able to get a good job at the airport because missionaries invested in him. He then said “If you ever need anything please do not hesitate to call me! I am excited to know that I am able to help a missionary and pay back just a little of what was given to me.”
Isn’t God good! This story encouraged me to know that the little things we do for others has an impact though we may never actually get to see it. If you ever grow weary or exhausted from serving – just think of my “Airport Angel” and know that the good you do for others is never wasted.
The Miles Family currently has 209 prayer partners who receive our prayer requests each week. Our family cannot express how grateful we are for the many responses we get back each time we send out prayer requests. We are blessed by your words of encouragement and honored to receive your requests for prayer. So many urgent prayer requests have gone out and we watched as God showed up and showed off by answering those prayers from our prayer partners. We could not have survived in Nigeria as long as we have without this group.
Please consider joining us as a prayer partner and commit to pray for our family as we serve in Nigeria. We also would love to hear from you so our family can pray for your family. No matter where we serve the Lord in this world (Nigeria or Main Street USA) we all need prayer and He hears all of our requests.
The Miles Family needs as many Prayer Warriors as we can get! If you are not already a prayer partner you can become one by clicking on the following link to sign up http://eepurl.com/DZf_D.
“Nothing is well done without prayer for the simple reason it leaves God out of the account” – E.M. Bounds.
So many of you have been praying for Titi for some time now. I met Titi my first year in Egbe and I knew immediately she walked with the Lord because she just oozed it. I took interest in Titi and was intentional in getting to know her better. Over the past few years Titi has become a part of our family and now lives with us in Jos, Nigeria. Please be in prayer as we continue to seek God’s wisdom on college opportunities for Titi. Nearly 75% of college applicants in Nigeria fail to get admission due to limited openings. There are around 150 universities in Nigeria, with a capacity to carry 600,000 students. For a country with 180 million people,62% of them 24 or younger, that means about half of the college age population is underserved. I asked Titi to share her story with you in her own words. I pray you can “see” her heart.
My Goal, My Dream, My Life
By Titi Afolabi
When I was young I always wanted to be a doctor, I had no idea what kind of doctor I wanted to be but I loved to put on a white lab coat, sew up my teddy bear, Dickson, and pretend it was the real thing. I stuck with my dream growing up although I started realizing it was not going to be as easy as I thought and maybe a doctor was not what I really wanted to be.
My family consists of my two parents and four children of which I am the youngest. Being the youngest meant I had to fight for everything I wanted in life. My father sent us all to good secondary schools, but there was no way his salary could send all four of us to universities and still take care of the family. At some point I realized I could not wait for my siblings to finish their education before I had the chance to go to a university. I decided that if I wanted to go to university I would have to work and pay for it myself.
After three years of trying to gain admittance to different universities and not gaining admission, even after meeting the criteria, I started getting restless and kept asking God what he wanted me to do. I decided I needed to get a job and save money and that was when I came in contact with Patrice Miles and C.A.R.E Africa. C.A.R.E. Africa is a ministry that helps the voiceless and exhausted children and widows in Egbe, Nigeria. I was employed as a child mentor with the responsibility of mentoring forty children. That year was the best year of my life so far.
My time at C.A.R.E Africa developed me because for the first time in my eighteen years of life I was responsible for not only myself but also forty other people. It was amazing! I loved all the laughter, joy and problems that came with my job. Dealing with teenagers, their parents, friends and the environment they live in was not simple or easy, but the challenges only honed my skills and passion for the vulnerable.
I discovered who I really am and what I really wanted to be through my experience at C.A.R.E. Africa. For the first time, people looked to me for direction. I was apportioned duties and held accountable for my mentoring role. Eighteen children were within my age group, some of them found it hard to follow my instructions at first, but then I realized that I had to assume the role I was given and that regardless of how young I was, I could be a good example for them. After a few months they started to trust me and see me as someone they could come to regardless of how they felt.
I look back now and realize God held me back from gaining admission to university for a purpose, so I could understand and embrace who I really am. Now I am nineteen and I know with confidence what I want to be – a social worker. I want to be the voice for the neglected and voiceless, to be there for people who have been cast out by the community or society. I know it will take a lot of work but I am willing and ready. God chose me for a purpose and I am prepared to fulfill it. I will trust in Him to open doors and make my desire to attend university a reality.
Do you participate in an AWANA program?
Do you know someone who does?
If so, please consider approaching the AWANA leadership and ask if they would be willing to partner with an AWANA in Egbe, Nigeria?
Our AWANA program in Egbe, Nigeria meets every Monday. The kids play sports followed by a biblical lesson and of course treats. We have over 200 kids that participate in AWANA. We distribute handouts at each meeting. The kids save every handout and bring them in little folders every Monday. I can only imagine these children getting them out at home and sharing them with their family members. God’s word is being spread through these handouts. The sweets are a special treat the children look forward to. It keeps them coming back to hear God’s word.
The handouts and treats are going to come to an end as we no longer have the funds to support these costs. We will continue the AWANA program, but funding is needed to print handouts and provide treats. We thought it would be so cool to find maybe two AWANA’s in the US that would partner with us at $25 a month each or $50 total. We could send letters, pictures and video back and forth between the AWANA’s. The kids on both sides of the ocean would be so blessed to see and hear from each other.
We of course are not limiting this to an AWANA program. If anyone is interested in helping us continue our AWANA program at the level we feel God has called us to please HELP. Click http://bit.ly/AWANAEgbe. If you know of an AWANA program that might be willing to team up with us please email me patrice.miles@sim.org.
I’ve been busy that’s for sure…
I’ve created SIM Nigeria’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Vimeo accounts. I of course stay busy finding and putting content on these social media pages for maximum exposure. I’ve been to several local events to film or take pictures to publish on our media sites. I’ve recently revised and published two very important brochures that SIM Nigeria uses for recruitment of short term missionaries as well as medical missionaries.
Along with all of this, there has also been a lot of traveling for me over the past few months in order to get video of four Theological colleges where SIM missionaries can come to serve. One of the colleges is about a 14 hour drive away from where we live. Another college is three hours away and yet another is about six hours away. This last one being located almost to the most northern border of Nigeria. Each visit consisted of many interviews with educators, administrators, and students. After all of the travel, I’ve spent about 60 hours editing this one video. The purpose of this is to get people excited about the opportunities to serve with SIM Nigeria if they are a professor or educator. Click the picture to see the video.
This will be longest of a series of videos I will complete for theological education in Nigeria. The idea would be to provide shorter versions of this to get people excited and if they should want more information, then they can watch this longer seven minute video.
Overall, my role here with SIM Nigeria is being well received by our fellow missionaries, who’s excitement is growing as they see the potential of helping their ministries. Also, our administration is enthused about this becoming a huge recruitment tool for our field. Some of the biggest excitement is from our Nigerian church, ECWA. These brothers and sisters who are ministering all over Nigeria, see the potential to provide a huge tool for them to reach the lost.
Pray for me as my work load is not getting smaller, but rather bigger. Upcoming, I will be working on videos and materials for medical missions, youth ministries, ministering to those marginalized & vulnerable in our society, short-term missions, the persecuted church, indigenous missions, trauma healing ministries, and so much more! Also, pray for workers, as the harvest is plentiful.
Wrecked CRV
On New Years Eve, one of former colleagues from Egbe was in Jos to visit. She said she wanted to meet one of her friends just down the road and said she would get a ride in a small taxi called a keke (kay-kay). Patrice said, “No way, just take our car and come back when your done.”
Unfortunately, she made it only about a half mile from the house before she was hit by another driver. The 4-way intersection is unmarked with any stop signs and it is unclear who truly has the right of way, even though our friend was on the larger
“main road”. Thankfully she is OK and had only some bruising and soreness on her left arm from the impact. We are relieved that the side airbag did deploy for her safety.
My Find in Abuja!
Our car suffered the worst. We deemed it a total loss and sold it for parts money. The good news is that SIM has a car insurance group and they are covering most all of the funds for replacement cost of that cars value. The only problem now was buying a car in Nigeria. The last car we bought, we bought from a missionary and we knew the history.
I had to take a short trip to Abuja to car shop and it was quite the experience. Most everything that I could look at had been wrecked and had terrible quality repair jobs. I was a little bummed that I couldn’t find something dependable until we came across the last car that I would l
ook at that day. A British embassy employee was selling her car and it was perfect and well maintained. It was $1,000 more than what the insurance company was giving us but we were just so grateful to even have found something.
Pray along with us that the deal goes through and that this new car will last us a very long time!
Through grace and forgiveness in Jesus Christ, the disarray we create with our choices and actions transforms into our testimony.
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
my words sound better coming from my hands than my mouth,
A writer whose passion is to encourage others to live joyfully!
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
"Only those who give away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.” (Mark 8:35)
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Patrice Miles
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Miles In Missions 