Even When It's Raining

photo from publicdomainpicture.net

We have a Congolese friend here, whom I will refer to as “Ben” so as to protect his privacy. Ben just moved his family to a new home, and for Ben and his family, this move was very significant. 

Housing for a majority of the people here consists of only a couple of small rooms, and the apartment is part of a duplex or four-plex. All of the families in the building share an outhouse for their bathroom needs. There is a water tap in the community where people go to collect their daily water. Often there is only a curtain where the door ought to be and if there is a window, it may or may not have a glass pane or a set of curtains. There is no indoor plumbing. There is seldom electricity.  Many families here are large, and they all sleep on mats on the floors.  Ben and his wife have six children.

Here are some examples of housing in DRC.  

This move was a big deal to Ben's family because for the first time in their lives, they are able to rent a little house with a tiny yard, a tiny kitchen, space for the children to sleep more comfortably, indoor plumbing and their own bathroom IN THE HOUSE. He was so excited when he told David that “now we can go to the bathroom even when it’s raining!” When it rains in Congo, it’s usually a real gully washer and going out in it can be dangerous with all the mud, poor visibility, and the semi-buried power lines. No one goes anywhere when it is raining. 

When David shared that with me, it stunned me. Here we are feeling inconvenienced when the water is off for a few hours, or when we have to stay home during civil unrest with our refrigerators full of food while the rest of the city doesn’t eat because without refrigeration in their homes they have to shop daily for provisions and it is too dangerous to venture out. How would I feel if our family didn’t even have our own bathroom? If something as simple as going to the restroom suddenly became a big deal?

That phrase has stuck with me for days now. I felt like God was asking me: "Do you love me? Do you trust me? Will you follow me? Will you praise me? Even when it's raining?" 

Sometimes, the combined distractions and needs, whether good or bad, trivial or important, internal or external, are like a rain storm. I know the path before me is slippery and dangerous, and that I should cling to God and praise Him, but my visibility is reduced in the storm and I can’t see Him. Do my love for God and my trust in Him motivate me to praise Him anyway?

We’ve recently had days of civil unrest here and people have been hurt and killed. People have suffered. People are angry, hurt and confused. The Congolese are going through a real and potentially ferocious storm right now. I pray that believers here can be a light, making God visible and showing others the way to Him, and loving as Christ loves. Even when it’s raining.

Separation and Reunion

Yesterday, we held our annual Christmas outreach at the airport where MAF's hangar is. In addition to MAF and other aviation groups, a large portion of the airport is for military use. Each year we host a service with music, a gospel presentation, and refreshments. We also distribute gospel tracts and Scriptures.

We had a large crowd this year and several decisions were made for Christ. 





Maurice, one of our long time national staff, was the "emcee."

The choir from the International Protestant Church of Kinshasa (IPCK),
led by my friend Sandy, a fellow MAF wife. They were fabulous and sang in Lingala, Swahili, French and English!

Passing out Scripture literature and refreshments.

Have you ever experienced the anticipation of seeing a loved one you've been separated from? Maybe planned a trip to see them and gone through the process of packing, buying gifts, etc? Or perhaps you invited them to come see you. You rearranged furniture and cleaned house, bought gifts and their favorite foods, planned things to do together, did your best to make an environment for them that said "you are loved and cherished." It didn't even seem like work and you didn't worry about the cost, because you were doing it for someone you loved. Maybe even as you did so you were reminded that Jesus is preparing a place for you to one day come home to.

Being away from those we love is painful, painful, painful. Even just the anticipation of a reunion is cause for joy. Last Sunday our pastor shared a thought from Max Lucado that Jesus would rather die for us than live without us. He loves us that much. And that is why He chose to come here. The little card in the photo above says it all: Jesus is the real reason for Christmas. 



This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. - 1 John 4:10

Have a joyous Christmas!

Thanks for Nothing!

We all have heard the expression “Thanks for nothing!” It isn’t really an offer of thanks at all. It is an angry declaration that the person speaking feels they have been treated wrongly, cheated, held out on.  This week the utility company came to my home and accused me of owing hundreds of dollars in unpaid bills dating back to four years before I moved into this house. It did not matter that I produced all the paperwork showing my innocence. They demanded money and I would not give it, so they cut my power line in two. I didn’t say anything to them, but for a while I sure wanted to say something like “Thanks for nothing. Have a nice day.” In my drippiest sarcastic tone. 

Sometimes, we look at our lives and there is so much stuff to deal with, so many problems we can’t solve. We feel like the squirrel in the movie “Over the Hedge” who runs to one end of the hedge and back and declares “It never ends!” Then he runs to the other end of the hedge and back and says, “It never ends that way too!” We feel helpless. Helplessness is not a feeling we like to experience, so then we become angry. 

We want God to fix it. Make it better. We are his children and when He doesn’t meet our expectations of what a Father should do, we act like, well, children. Children who are angry and ungrateful and say “thanks for nothing.” 

What if “nothing” IS a gift? What if we had to trust Him for everything? What if instead of taking our problems away He walked with us through them? What would we learn from that? How would it transform us? 

If He gives me “nothing,” can I in sincerity say “Thank you, Father, for nothing?” trusting that in His love and wisdom He has given me something worth more than it appears to be?

In church yesterday we sang a Keith Green song, “There is a Redeemer.” The first part goes like this:

There is a redeemer, 
Jesus, God's own Son,
Precious Lamb of God, Messiah, 
Holy One,
Jesus my redeemer, 
Name above all names,
Precious Lamb of God, Messiah,
Oh, for sinners slain.
Thank you oh my Father, 
For giving us Your Son,
And leaving Your Spirit, 
'Til the work on Earth is done.

"In everything give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18

We can give thanks to Him IN everything, because He has given us his Son, and that IS EVERYTHING. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sew Exciting!

With all its problems and challenges, DRC is also a place where God is present, active and doing exciting things. Thursday just happened to be a real cool beans day, chock full of reminders of God's love for the people of Congo. I have been feeling bad about not posting and sharing about it sooner, but maybe this is good timing. Today, I became once again a stuck-at-home stay-at-home mom. Our car, which is fairly new-to-us still, has a head issue. (It is a Burton, after all.) So, today turned out to be a good day to share all the good stuff God has been doing here and remind myself what is really important. (However, I won't object if y'all pray for our transportation problem.)

Thursday morning I went to the Maison de Couture (Bandal Center) with Jill. I was excited to see some young ladies working there who I first met as students at the Mitendi Center. They had graduated and are now in the internship program at Bandal. While we were there a young girl came to speak with Jill. She had heard about the Mitendi Center and wanted to know more about attending!



My job was to inspect piles of zippered pouches. Those that did not pass inspection were set aside to be corrected. While I studied zippers, Jill was in an impromptu meeting with a woman who had dropped by to see her.

Mama Myala and Jill Lowery

Her name is Mama Myala, and I am so glad I got to meet her! After she left, I learned from Jill that Mama Myala is a literacy expert and trains literacy teachers. She goes anywhere she is invited, and in 2005, she made contact with a tribe of Batwa people (pigmies) who invited her to stay with them in the forest and teach them to read. She goes back, by a combination of truck and canoe, as often as she can to teach and to encourage them in their faith. Mama Mayala had come to talk with Jill about some Batwa girls who want to learn to be seamstresses. She asked if she could get them to Kinshasa, could they live and study at Mitendi Women's Center? Jill was able to tell her that there are people who give money for scholarships so that girls do not get turned away for lack of funds! 

Mama Myala is hands and feet of Jesus to this tribe of Batwa and to others by bringing the message of the gospel and by empowering them to read the Word of God. Please pray for her and for her ministry to these isolated people. If you are interested in helping the Mitendi Center with scholarships, you can let me know and I can connect you with Jill.

Thursday afternoon, our MAF team met at the airport for a dedication ceremony for our "new" PC-12. Our program has been hoping and praying for this plane for several years! It will enable us to reach more people at greater distances with the life changing message of Christ and with medical supplies, etc. 




Having a dedication ceremony did more than just cement our commitment to be servants and to glorify God with the plane. It brought our national staff and our expat staff together and reinforced our shared purpose and unity. It also gave us a unique opportunity to publicly share with others who work at the airport our reason for being here and the Savior whose love compels us. Pray for our pilots, mechanic, office staff, program manager, moms at home, and the people and ministries we serve here.

Ebola and MAF in Congo

Preparing to fly supplies to Boende, photo by Nick Frey

In our last prayer letter, we asked readers to pray for a quick end to the ebola outbreak and for all the medical personnel, patients, and officials affected by this virus. The outbreak began last March in a remote area in Guinea, and spread to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. Since we wrote that plea just a few weeks ago, the virus has gained momentum instead of slowing. Ebola has spread to Senegal and to a new area in Guinea that was previously unaffected. Last week alone nearly 400 people died, bringing the total deaths to more than 1,900. One hundred twenty health care workers have died.

Ebola was first discovered in 1976 in outbreaks that happened concurrently in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and is named for the river near the afflicted village in Congo. Since then, there have been over 20 known ebola outbreaks in Africa, eleven of them in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

More people have died in the current outbreak than in all of the previously known outbreaks combined. 

Another change since our prayer letter was written is that an unrelated ebola outbreak of a different strain is now here in Congo. To date there have been 53 confirmed cases and 31 deaths in the Boende District. DRC has a lot of experience with ebola and the area was quickly quarantined. Boende is in a remote area, 542 kilometers from Kinshasa, and not easily accessible. That makes it more difficult for the virus to spread, but it also makes it more challenging to get needed medical personnel and supplies in. This is where MAF comes in.

MAF has actively helped in past outbreaks and our team here is already making flights to Boende with medical teams and equipment and flying back with samples for the labs in Kinshasa. One very specific way you can pray is for a portable laboratory so that medical personnel can make a diagnosis within hours instead of waiting for days to confirm if someone has ebola or not.

Please pray. Ask God to burden his people to pray and to give us hearts that are broken over the pain, agony and death that people are suffering.

Pray for all affected.

Pray for an end soon. WHO is projecting that up to 20,000 people may become infected before this outbreak can be brought to an end. I am praying that they are WRONG.

Pray for the suffering economies of the affected countries as commerce has been greatly hindered. 

Pray for the governments and people in authority who have to make decisions about how to contain the virus.

Pray for believers to have strong faith and to be instruments of peace and calm when others are feeling afraid and panicky.

Pray for opportunities for people to hear the gospel and find hope and salvation in Christ.

Click here to read an MAF press release about our connection to the current outbreak.

Click here to learn more about the history of ebola, courtesy of the World Health Organization.

Precious

We all occasionally have a day that causes us before it is finished to think perhaps we should have stayed in bed so as to avoid all the day’s mishaps. Yesterday was my turn. 

I didn’t expect everything to take longer than usual and to feel rushed. I didn’t expect to have a headache all day, or to have an invasion of ants akin to an Alfred Hitchcok movie. Less than an hour after my floors were swept and mopped, ants were all over the floors AND walls of one end of the house. I did not expect that as I was spraying insecticide and sweeping ants off the walls and floors, my son would accidentally spill an entire box of Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa Powder on yet another portion of the freshly mopped floor. It was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. 

Cocoa can be hard to find here and very expensive when it is available. Good cocoa is even more rare and Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa does not exist here at all, ever.  I had brought back a couple of boxes from furlough and they were going to have to last until the next furlough two years later.  It was an accident, and I knew it, but for just a second I wanted to turn into something like Gollum yelling about his Precious. I thank God that as I knelt there sweeping up the mess I looked up and saw my son’s face just before I was about to let my frustration fly out of my mouth like an arrow and hit him right in the heart. It gave me enough pause to be able to stop myself.  I still had to explain that my frustration was with the way our day was going and not with him, but at least I did not have to apologize for hurtful words. 

It is in those "unexpecteds" that our true character shows, and I saw that I had plenty of room for improvement. I also saw that God is even now still working on me. I saw Him give grace in a moment when I needed it. He gently reminded me that cocoa and clean floors are very nice things to have, but they are not precious. We are here in Congo because people are what is precious - so precious that Christ gave his life for them. 



Please be in prayer for us, that we might always be mindful of what is truly precious and that our words and deeds will reflect that. Pray for the precious people of Congo, that they will place their faith in Christ and find their strength in Him.

Thank yous

I have a friend here who is about to leave for a vacation in the U.S. That means I have an opportunity to send mail back, so I have been busy writing letters. Serving as a missionary with MAF means we raise our own ministry support. We literally could not be here without the help of our partners who pray for us and give financially. A lot of the letters I write are thank you notes. 

When I was a kid and someone gave me a gift, my mom would make me write a thank you note and I would whine about it. It was a chore. Now when I look over at a stack of thank you letters that I have written, each one represents a relationship. Whether it be an individual, a business, a church or a family - all of them have invested in us not just financially but also in friendship. We are a team working together to advance God's kingdom. 

I took that photo of the church above a few years ago when we had the opportunity to visit the village of Nkara. This photo is one I took a couple weeks ago of the church in Kikongo village. They represent people in Congo who are part of the Body of Christ. 

There are more churches that have been planted and established here. There are also hospitals, seminaries, schools, ministries to lepers, and other evangelistic missions - even a Christian radio station! We are deeply grateful to be part of MAF and to be a tiny part of all that. 

I get really excited when I consider that one day, believers in Congo and believers who helped send all the Christian workers, including me, to Congo will meet one another in heaven and adore Christ together! 

I always used to think as a kid that we wrote thank you notes to show that we are grateful. As I grew up I learned that expressing thanks actually makes you more grateful. In fact I am not certain that sending a thank you isn't equally as beneficial for the sender as it is for the recipient, if not more so.

Writing thank you notes is a privilege! Each one is a reminder of God's power and provision, of a common vision He has given to us to see others come to know Him, and the incredible gift of a relationship rooted in the love of Christ. 

How cool beans is that?!?

Thank you for reading my blog, for praying, for giving and sending! 

Non-news is Good News!

I took this photo at our Easter sunrise service. It's always a special service, not only because we are celebrating the resurrection of Christ but also because we meet by the Congo River. It's just beautiful. These guys, and several other fishermen, were already out on the water when we arrived at six a.m. I wonder what it is like to paddle one of those little hand-made wooden boats out onto the giant Congo River, especially in the quiet mystery of early morning. I wonder if they know about some other fishermen long ago who walked with Jesus and learned to fish for men.

I wanted to post Easter photos and an update much sooner, but we had internet issues. I also didn't know quite how to go about writing what is on my mind and heart right now, and still don't, so I'll just spill it out.

I love the diversity of attending an international church. We have people in our church from all over the world who come together each week all having one thing in common - our faith in Jesus - to worship Him. 

We also had a baptism service, and one of the baptizees was Daniel's friend Nicholas. Celebrating the new life of each of the three who were baptized was even more special because we were doing it on the day we celebrate the fact that Jesus is alive!

Just since Easter, a lot of dark and tragic things have happened here in Congo. Here are some recent events, in case you haven't seen it in the news. 

A horrible train wreck killed many people. The exact number is up for debate and you can read more about it HERE. One thing that we do know is that there were people on that train who should not have been there. They had paid to ride illegally so other people could line their pockets and the train was overloaded. Corruption is rampant here, and it always hurts the poorest people the most.

Yellow fever outbreaks have been reported. Yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes. Maybe the most tragic thing about a yellow fever outbreak is that it shouldn't happen. There is a vaccine. 

A power outage at a stadium incited a stampede, and several people were killed. The infrastructure here is still poor.

And in case you have seen the news, good things have happened as well, even though they did not make headlines in big papers or television. In a new twist on the saying "no news is good news," here is some non-news worth knowing.

The Congolese Baptists and the Mitendi Center finally received a court decision in their favor, against the people who were stealing their land and selling it off piecemeal! This is a vital ministry and it is a miraculous victory!

Our MAF team here does regular vaccine flights. Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders also work in DRC to make vaccines accessible to as many as possible. In April alone our pilots have flown thousands of miles for medical flights and thousands more for relief and development.

I honestly don't know how long ago this happened, but the ministry is ongoing and I just found the article. It is one of the reasons MAF is here and one of the reasons we love being part of MAF. People are finding new life in Christ through the Jesus Film ministry!

In the midst of all the death and pain that is happening here, lives and souls are being saved! Please pray for Congo and rejoice in the good that God is doing here!

Finding Hope in Mitendi

Last week, Daniel and I spent a couple of days with Jill Lowery to learn more about her missionary role here in Kinshasa. I got to know Jill a little better, learn about the heart God has given her for Congo, AND - I got to see first-hand a ministry that is changing lives! God isn't just working in the bush where our MAF pilots fly every day. He is also at work right here in Kinshasa and the surrounding area.

As a missionary with the Congolese Baptist Community, Jill works with two centers. The first is called Mitendi Women's Center, or Marie Mattie Women's Center and is about a 45 minute drive from my home, in a neighborhood that is impoverished even by third world standards. Marie Mattie was the first Congolese woman to graduate from college here and had a vision for helping women. This center is a two-year residential program for girls at high risk of exploitatioin or prostitution. In addition to the women's ministry, they also operate the Marie Mattie Complexe Scolaire, a school for kindergarten through sixth grade for at risk and vulnerable kids. These are kids who otherwise would not be able to attend school. If you want to know more about what the terms "at risk"  and "vulnerable" mean when applied to children and teens, there is an explanation HERE.

When we arrived, our first sight was all the little school kids standing under a shade tree. I got my camera out and immediately a few kids noticed and started "posing."

Then more kids noticed.

And MORE! This took less than ten seconds. They were all smiles and excitement...

...until the teacher blew his whistle. 

He led them in a couple of marching songs to help them get rid of their wiggles before they headed back into their classrooms. Wish you could have been there - they were SO CUTE!

We were allowed to visit the classrooms, and in each one the entire class stood and sang a welcome song for their visitors. This has happened to me in the orphanages and other schools I have visited. It is very much a part of the culture here and even some adult groups have sung welcome songs for me.

In the Women's Center, many of the young ladies have not had much opportunity for education, so they are taught literacy, basic education, and French. They also learn skills which they can use to support themselves such as crochet, knitting, sewing, and restaurant work. It is a two-year, residential program. They also study the Bible and of course the primary goal is for these girls to come to know Christ and learn to trust in Him.

The day we visited, Mama Jackie was teaching sewing class.

The girls learn with hand-cranked sewing machines...

...and hand-drawn lessons, without patterns. 

The way our grandmothers and great-grandmothers did it.

Currently, funds are being raised and efforts are being made to build a protective wall around the center property to stop attempts to steal and sell off the land, to keep animals out of the vegetable gardens, and to increase the safety and security of the girls who live there. 

This gentleman had the task of getting water for mixing cement - a time consuming task when you have to draw the water by hand from a cistern with a homemade bucket and funnel.

The next day we visited the second center, Marie Mattie Maison de Couture. This center is an extension of the first one, sort of an internship program so that when the ladies graduate from the two-year program, they have a chance to refine their skills and earn money while doing it. On the days that Mama Jackie is not at the Women's Center, she is at the Maison de Couture. The "house of sewing" is in the city and has better power and electric sewing machines. Some are hand-crank machines that have been transformed into electric machines!

The ladies sew school uniforms, clothing, surgical drapes and bed coverings for hospitals, baby layettes, and more.

One of Jill's tasks is to inspect each completed item, since the girls are still in the learning process. Each intern then has to correct her mistakes before an item can be sold. This teaches them to take responsibility for and pride in their work and to understand the importance of doing one's best. It also reinforces the core verse for the center: Colossians 3:23-24, which says “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.” 

Jill and Mama Jackie are always on the lookout for new things for the interns to make and sell, increasing their skills and their potential to earn a decent living for themselves. Here they are inspecting a quilted zipper pouch that I had with me so they could see how it was made. 

I am sure I left out something, or several somethings, about this vital ministry, so I have included links below to the Lowerys' web site and to a site with information about the center. I asked Jill if there are any specific ways to pray for the ministry and this is what she shared with me.

First: Pray that the girls will persevere and complete the program. They face many obstacles.                                                     Second: The greatest stress right now is getting the wall built and bringing an end to the problem with the man who is trying to sell off the land that belongs to the center. Pray that God gives favor over corrupt officials.                                                         Third: Pray for Mama Jackie for continued health. She has given her life for the ministry and without her, there would be no center.

Useful links:

Lowerys' Web Site

About The Fence Project

Testimonies

Worship BG - Not To Us (Photo credit: bemky)

We just got home from church and I wanted to jot down my thoughts before I forget them because I left feeling so blessed and grateful. When the hard moments come, it helps to be able to look back through my journaling and remember these kinds of moments, the moments when I feel God's presence so strongly.

The sermon was about the importance of our testimony. Not just about sharing my testimony, but about remembering it. About not forgetting and losing sight of who I am because of it. About not forgetting how I even came to HAVE a testimony. He shared about the ten lepers, and the one who returned "praising God in a loud voice." His first testimony. 

A family dedicated their new daughter to the Lord and testifying to their love for God and vowing to teach her and train her in His Word.

After the sermon, we shared communion. The church family remembering Christ's sacrifice and giving thanks. That, in itself, is a testimony. 

Daniel's friend is a new believer and today was his first opportunity to share communion with his church. Daniel chose to skip the kids' class and stay in "big church" to share his friend's special day with him. It hasn't been all that long since his own first communion and he remembers how special it was. Two young boys showing the world that they are Christ followers. Another testimony.

Sandy, our music leader, led the choir in "Amazing Grace," and opened it by singing the first verse in a solo a cappella. Oh, my! Another.

As a last act of testifying in unity, we sang:

"For all your goodness, I will keep on singing,

10,000 reasons for my heart to find!"

There is power in a testimony. When one of God's people shares with others about the things He has done, there is power in that. It brings people to Christ. It uplifts and encourages people. It strengthens and emboldens them. It gives people hope. It glorifies God! And, I think, it must please Him very much.

Mary Had A Baby Pooch

Nativity scene on display in Perstorps kyrka, Sweden. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For those of us who are detail people, I don’t know if there is a single truly accurate nativity set or painting out there, anywhere. Even discounting the fact that no one knows what Mary or Joseph looked like, how many shepherds, etc were there, or even what the manger looked like, every single nativity scene or figurine of Mary the mother of Jesus that I have seen depicted her as being radiant, with perfect hair and beautiful skin and a nice flat tummy tucked behind her belt. In real life, Mary had a baby pooch. She had, after all, just given birth. She probably also was exhausted and had circles under her eyes. Joseph might have looked a little haggard too.

When I was a kid, I used to let it bother me that most nativity scenes I came across depicted Mary as a blue-eyed blonde. Didn’t anyone read their Bible and know that Mary and Joseph were Hebrews? I have since seen many different nativity scenes featuring several nationalities but it no longer bothers me. I guess I decided that the intended message being conveyed wasn’t that Mary looked like this or that but that Jesus came for ALL mankind. 

Sometimes we can get so caught up in the details of something that we miss the simplicity. The beautiful, simple truth of Christmas is that God loved us and sent his Son, and loves us still.

I hope your Christmas this year is sweet and simple, and I mean that in the best possible way.

Merry Christmas!

Tis The Season

We are off in just a bit to northern Missouri to get Emily! We will have her for three weeks! Ironically, even though we spent the last three Christmases in Africa, the first Christmas we will experience without all three of our children will be here in America. Our oldest has grown up and has responsibilities now and has to work. So we are taking Christmas to him tonight and celebrating a bit early!

I had sad news in my email box this morning. A year ago, I wrote about "Operation Clean Kinshasa" in THIS POST. The police are at it again. As you can see in the photo above, there are many vendors all over Kinshasa who set up tables and sell whatever they can to get by; fruits and vegetables, bread, phone cards, etc. Police are cleaning up the city by clearing out the vendors, and they are doing it in cruel fashion - by assaulting people, destroying and burning their tables and inventory, etc.

In Kinshasa most people live hand to mouth, using each days meager wages to feed their families for that day. To have to begin again with no inventory and no money is devastating and frightening. As in the U.S., shoppers generally spend more this time of year. Expats are buying extra food and goodies for the holidays and this could have been a good time of year for the vendors, but as long as this clean up operation continues, it is not safe for the vendors to even attempt to restart their businesses. Instead of a season of extra earnings, more food in the kids' bellies, and good cheer, Kinshasa vendors are having a season of violence, loss, and fear.

Please pray for those affected by this, the vendors and their families, the police who are being ordered to do this, and the working people who are now having a difficult time finding affordable wares. Satan would have this serve him as a way to distract people from the real meaning of Christmas - that God loved us and sent His Son to save us from our sins. Pray that instead, people will look to God to be their salvation, their refuge, and their provider.