Ministry Newsletter

This newsletter is called a “praise report,” because I love to share our many victories. God has certainly blessed this ministry, and we are moving ahead to establish more shelters for women, and more vocational projects to empower them. But we also experience temporary setbacks and disappointments at times. This month I must share a disappointing tragedy.

Just a few weeks ago we lost the director of our project in Mzuzu, Malawi, to cancer. Charity Mkamanga (below, with her husband, Tony) was a very special lady. When I met her more than 8 years ago she begged me to start a project to help the struggling women of her region. She was a Bible school teacher, a preacher, a gospel pioneer and a spiritual mother to many. Back in August 2023, weeks after I dedicated our Naomi’s House shelter in Mzuzu, Charity underwent a hysterectomy because of pain she was experiencing. She later learned that she had uterine cancer.

The cancer was aggressive, and it took her life quickly. We had prayed for healing, but the Lord saw fit to take her to heaven. Tony is grieving, along with their church and the wider community. We are also crying. This was a tragic loss. Charity was like Tabitha in the book of Acts, “abounding with deeds of kindness and charity which she continually did” (9:36). Charity taught our classes on tailoring, and she discipled the women in our vocational program. Below you can see some of the ladies she trained to lead this ministry. Thankfully, her daughter, Grace, will be directing the ministry from this point. Grace shares our vision to empower marginalized women who have been abused and abandoned.

Please pray for us in this transition. We also plan to build a small daycare center next door to Naomi’s House, and we plan to call it Charity’s House. This will be a place where young mothers can leave their children with babysitters while they are being trained in our sewing or baking schools. We will need $15,000 for this building. If you, your church, or your business can contribute to this cause, please make a donation.

In early January, all the members of The Mordecai Project board of directors met to review the accomplishments of 2023 and to pray for 2024. Deborah and I are so grateful for the precious friends who have come alongside us to provide accountability, counsel and encouragement. I was excited to announce that 2023 was our best year ever in terms of donations and completed projects. Below you can see everyone on the team: Eddie and Beth Taylor, Matt Judd (with his wife Suzie), Chris Revells (with Jeannie), Dee Mueller (with Mark), Paul Muzichuk (with Maria), Denise Gedda (with Gordon), my assistant Abdiel Lopez, and me and Deborah. We are blessed to walk together with these special people.

Later in January I traveled to Oklahoma City to speak at Reflections Church. This is a church led by my close friend Ben Crisp, who I met in 2015 when he was a student at Emmanuel College. I was blessed to be able to mentor Ben in his early years of ministry, and he traveled with me to some places while he was attending seminary at Regent University. He later met Tiffany at Regent, and I did their wedding. Then they moved to Oklahoma City to launch Reflection Church. This time I preached at the Sunday service and I did a special prophetic meeting with their leaders and volunteers. I’m excited to announce that Tiffany will be a speaker at this year’s women’s Bold Venture event in Tulsa, September 19-21.

Also in January we sent the funds to pay school fees for 42 girls at the Life Mission School in Moi’s Bridge, Kenya. You can see a few of the girls below. We have partnered with Pastor Elijah Wafula for many years, and we built a dormitory for the girls three years ago. Keeping these girls in school protects them from sexual abuse as well as forced marriage and female mutilation. Thank you for helping us protect them so they can have a bright future. We are currently raising the funds to build additional classrooms and toilets for the girls at this school. Your donations are appreciated.

I will soon be leaving on a two-week trip to Uganda in February, where we will dedicate our women’s empowerment center in Masindi. I will also be doing conferences for men and women in Masindi, Rwentobo and Kampala, and then I will go to the village of Kagoma to work with my friend and ministry partner, Paul Wandera. You can see him in the photo below, with his wife, Christine. I will be assessing the needs in Kagoma so that we can officially launch our new women’s center there. We also would like to help Pastor Paul build a school, because the children there are in a desperate crisis. If you would like to give to any of the Uganda projects, you will find each one listed on our website

I want to introduce you to Micho and Stefani Anthony (below). I met this young couple when I was in Sri Lanka last fall. Stefani has a strong burden to help the women and children of central Sri Lanka, because they suffer so much from abuse. We are planning to pioneer a project with them in the city of Bandarawela, where Buddhists sometimes attack Christians and burn churches. Please pray for this need and ask the Lord to give us His strategy.

I had another loss last week. I learned that my friend Jerry Leverette died suddenly from heart failure. Jerry and his late wife, June (in the photo below), were like spiritual parents to me when I was a young man. June introduced me to the baptism of the Holy Spirit when I lived in suburban Atlanta in 1976. I went to their home many times for prayer, Bible studies and fellowship times—and we stayed close for more than 50 years. June died in 2020. Jerry, who was 79, was also a supporter of The Mordecai Project. His gifts over the past few years are like a sweet-smelling offering. I will be doing Jerry’s funeral on Sunday, Jan. 28.

Thank you so much for loving us and praying for us, in the good times and the difficult times. Please pray for these needs:

** Lee will lead a men’s conference in New Jersey, January 26-27
** Lee will teach at the Slavic Missionary Bible School in Jacksonville, Fla., Jan. 29-Feb. 3
** Lee will preach at Living Streams Church in Jacksonville, Feb. 5
** Lee will minister in Uganda, Feb. 8-26
** Please agree with us for $382,000 to cover the costs of all our current overseas projects.

To give to our overseas work, just hit the “Donate” button below and follow the prompts. To give by check, mail it to The Mordecai Project, P.O. Box 2781, LaGrange, GA 30241.