Change of Plans

This year we've had more than the usual amount of stress and struggles, so we took a few days away to celebrate our 25th anniversary and decompress a little. The plan was to come back refreshed and ready to tackle moving to the new apartment. We had a generous window of time before the old house had to be vacated so we were going to pace ourselves and not make it into something that was harder than it needed to be, even for Congo. 

Sometimes, plans change.

We arrived home at about 1:30 in the morning and before we even entered the house we could smell that something had burnt. Our guard said the electric cable had burned. No surprise. We generally pay for burned cable to be replaced about once a week. So we went on inside and were greeted first by stronger, migraine-inducing smell and our normally white floor was black with soot.

We walked a bit further and found the cause. When the electric cable burned, it caused a big spike in the voltage. One of our voltage regulators couldn't handle it and caught fire, burning completely up. The fire traveled up the wall and into the breaker box, doing quite a bit of damage there.

The walls are concrete, but if the fire had gone just a few inches higher, our wood ceiling would have caught fire and it would have spread throughout the house. If we had been home and it had been worse, Daniel could have been trapped in his room because in Congo, all the windows and doors have bars on them. 

So. Change of plan. With no power, and no relief from the smell or the heat, we decided to begin moving immediately. Right now we are borrowing the home of some friends who are away and moving as much as we can each day by making multiple trips in our car. We also have to clean the soot off every single item in the house, books, photos, furniture, you-name-it, before we can pack it. And David has work at the hangar - so it is slow going. 

This is very inconvenient. But we are thankful that we get to describe our experience with that adjective instead of words like devastating or tragic. God protected our family and our property, and we are humbled and grateful.

Two Transformers

Three phase pole mounted transformer in Syria. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Our week went something like this:

- Our daughter needed oral surgery. We carry very high deductibles, and this year she actually met hers. That's not a good thing but it meant if we could get her surgery done this year, it would save a ton of money. The problem was that she is going back to school in a week and has no transportation once she gets there.

- Honey, the toilet is leaking again."

- Honey, the bedroom air-conditioner is not working."

- Honey, the a/c in the car (that just got repaired) is not working."

Everyday it was a new problem and no time to deal with figuring out what is wrong, shopping for tools and parts, and repairing it all. The really fun news came yesterday, when we called the electric company after our power was off for 24 hours:

- The transformer is burnt up. It will be a long time before you have electricity again.

Without a transformer, there is no power. Period.

The very word transformer brings up some unpleasant memories of our first year here. The transformer burned and it was over five weeks before we had electricity. Then just weeks after we finally got one, election season began and a candidate commandeered our transformer and hauled it away to use for a neighborhood that housed some of his constituents. 

I won't lie. That was hard. It would be challenging enough for anyone raised with the convenience of 24/7 electricity. It was our first year, so we were still not accustomed to the different life and the climate. It was hard to sleep at night in the heat, and being exhausted just made things harder to deal with. At the time I was dealing with painful bone spurs in both feet that eventually required surgery. AND, we were all dealing with the emotions that go along with the first child graduating and getting ready to go to live across the ocean. 

But one thing we learned through all of that is that we were not all alone. God never left us, and He showed his love and presence in very tangible ways. We had friends and team members who let us use their washing machines and take showers at their houses. He provided extra funds so we could buy fuel to run the generator to charge batteries and cool down the fridge. He used others to counsel me to make plans to get my feet taken care of instead of trying to stick it out until furlough (another two years away). He gave us people who prayed for us and encouraged us. The fact that without a transformer we had no power source for our home reminded us that God is the source of our strength.

God is no less present or loving this time around either. As challenging as it can be to schedule a medical procedure on short notice, He provided someone with a great reputation who not only fit Emily in right away but also worked with our insurance and handled everything with professionalism and kindness. Emily had her surgery yesterday and is recuperating in the very capable care of my parents. 

Once again we have friends who have already offered to let us come over and use their washing machine.

The toilet still leaks. The a/c in the bedroom and the car are still broken. The power is still off. But I am confident that God knows what we need and will provide it. It will be fun to see how He choose to do it. Do I hope we get it sooner rather than later? Sure, I do. I also know that if we have to wait, good will come of it. The lessons I learned last time have hopefully made my faith stronger and made me more perseverant and more grateful for this go-round. I am hoping and praying that God uses our transformer issue to transform me. 

Dough Knot: Try this at home!

I have always had mixed feelings about the Proverbs 31 woman, mainly because if each of her aspects were listed in a report card I would have a long list of "Fails", a few "Passes", and maybe one, possibly two "Excels". Maybe. On a very good day.

Yesterday was a very good day. I made these:

They are called Garlic Knots, and I found the recipe here at The Recipe Critic. It did not matter that there were dishes in the sink and laundry to put away. The house was filled with a wonderful hot bread and garlic smell that worked like a siren's song to distract everyone from all that other stuff. And they tasted wonderful. My son arose and called me blessed, my husband also and he praised me. 

Score one "Excel" for the day!

This morning I was up at an indecently early hour and decided to try another new recipe I found: One Hour Easy Cinnamon Rolls. 

Tah dah!

Except that because I am me, it took two hours. I just barely got them out of the oven before the morning power outage started. And it only made a dozen. So I will have to either double it next time or find another recipe. And instead of getting up early I will have to just not go to bed the night before. (Pillsbury Grands!, I miss you!) I think now I remember why I don't make cinnamon rolls very often. 

They were quite yummy, so if you are not me, and you don't have to feed a growing man-child, and you like to get up before the rest of the world goes to bed, it is a good recipe. I think next time my family asks me why I don't make cinnamon rolls more often I will just whip up a batch of garlic knots for supper and make them forget all about everything else.

A Series of Unusual Events

This week and next, we have a series of unusual events - all of which are cool, cool beans! Yes, cool enough to say it twice.

Unusual event number one? The bad guys lost and the good guys have prevailed! I wrote about Jill Lowery and the ministry at the Mitendi Center some time ago, and their efforts to stop certain people who were stealing their land and then selling it piecemeal to other people. After a battle that took years and had to go through the courts, the ministry has won and gets to keep their land! This was very obviously orchestrated by God and nothing short of a miracle. Jill gave me permission to post her words and photos as an update since so many of you have been praying about this situation.

Here is what Jill posted: "The Mitendi Wall is happening, people!!! After too many interruptions, the crew has already completed half the wall along the back property limit! Please pray that they can finish without further harassment. I'm so grateful to all of you for your prayers and support! Love you!!!"  

"These sweet ladies are the heart of the Mitendi program. They've fought long and hard to make this happen."

If you don't know what I am talking about, here are links to my posts about Mitendi: Finding Hope in Mitendi and Prayers Needed. 




Second unusual event? Tadah! I made a dress! That hasn't happend in 13 years. And it showed. I had to rip out some seams and redo stuff. I found this lovely fabric here in Kinshasa last year.

And I had one little fat quarter of brown batik which I love and wanted to use as an accent. I decided to make the waist band, belt and hem band out of it. But I didn't have enough. So I improvised and sewed the middle portion of the belt with a plain brown. 

I also had to use the plain brown on the backside of the hemband. I figured it would be on the inside of the skirt and the belt would be hidden inside the waistband and no one would ever see my little improvisations. Except, you just did.





It's hot and only having power for a few hours each day made me want to rush, so there are plenty of mistakes. But I tried on four shirts at Wal-mart last summer off the same rack and every single one had major sewing flaws front and center so I couldn't even buy one. I figure my dress looks at least as good as that. 

Unusual events three and four? Our first-born is about to get married! Since we had to fly to the states anyway, and we have to go through Brussels to do it, we scheduled a two day layover and are taking a mini-vacation! We haven't had power for over two days now and don't expect to get it for several more days. Someone dug up our power line and stole three meters! So we are cleaning out the fridge and freezer in the morning and flying away tomorrow evening! Electricity, here we come!

Please keep praying for the Mitendi Center and for Jill. The wall still has a long way to go and it will take some time to get all the illegal squatters off the land. 

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.

Inconceivable!

Today my husband said this to me over the phone:

"Don't worry about that one. I'm in some back alley somewhere. I don't know where I am or how I am going to get out of here, but I am making a purchase."

Now, what would you think if you heard that in the U.S? Something shady going down, I would bet. Here is what was really going down.

I was shopping downtown with a couple of MAF wives/friends, enjoying a day out of the house, and saw a refrigerator. We are still using a loaner and I knew David was out shopping for one so I called him to tell him I found one and ask him if the price was good. 

David had gone to a store, found a refrigerator, and attempted to purchase it. They were willing to sell him one, but they only had the floor model and they said it would take a couple of hours to get one from "the warehouse." In Congo time, that could possibly mean sometime the same day, or not. So David asked if he could drive to the warehouse and pick it up. That is how he ended up where he was when I happened to call him.

But you need to fully understand the kind of morning he had in order to appreciate shopping in Kinshasa. We had decided that with our family being smaller now, and the power issues being what they are and freezers keeping cold better than refrigerators, that it would cost the same amount to buy a very small refrigerator and a separate small freezer as it would to buy one full-sized refrigerator. So that is what he was attempting to do. They also only had the floor model of the freezer. After David drove to the warehouse to get the refrigerator and freezer, they only had the refrigerator. He had to drive to another place to pick up the freezer. See how much he loves me?


I arrived home from my morning with the ladies to find a new refrigerator in my kitchen. 

We plugged it in. Then the power went out. Within five minutes. Really. At least I was able to laugh. 

So if you've never been here, shopping is an inconceivable experience. It is also inconceivable to me that we have been here less than four years and this is our third refrigerator. I am really grateful to have this one and I hope it lasts a good long time!

Kinshasa Journal 2: Robocops and Refrigerators

Thanks Nick Frey for the photo!

We’ve been here almost a week! Where did the time go? 

Here is a list of highlights and “lowlights” from our first week back in Kinshasa.
We arrived late on Thursday evening. On the way home from the airport, I got to see the traffic robot, aka robocop. These new aluminum and steel traffic officers were built here in Kinshasa while we were in the states. You can see more photos, some video footage, and read more about the robocops HERE.

Upon arriving at the house, we were pleasantly surprised at the work our team had put into cleaning it and stocking it with enough food to get us started until we could go shopping. David Francis had done some plumbing and wiring repairs so that we could have electricity and showers. There was a welcome banner for Daniel from one of his friends. The beds were made with clean sheets. We were UNpleasantly surprised to see someone else’s refrigerator in our living room when we walked in, because it could only mean one thing. Sure enough, our refrigerator that we bought shortly before we left for furlough was not functional. 

It did not take us long to feel like we were back in Congo again. Friday night the car we are borrowing from MAF broke down on a dead end road and we did not have working phones yet. Not that anyone could have easily come to help us because the reason we turned down the wrong road was because our road is under construction and is completely barricaded and we were trying to find another way to the house. The nice thing is that in Kinshasa if you have some francs in your pocket you can always find a couple of guys willing to help you push your car. All we had was a twenty dollar bill so we really made their day. For a lot of people here twenty dollars is more than a week’s wages. Then on Saturday evening we spent nearly an hour stuck in a traffic jam. The kicker was that we were only about one minute from our destination when we got stuck.

We’ve already had several power outages, including one that lasted about thirty hours. David has already repaired the same light fixture four times. Two voltage regulators have fried. I no longer have a dryer, which means scratchy towels and hoping the mango flies don’t find my clothesline. We haven’t found a vehicle yet. 

David jumped in with both feet and started working in the hangar on Monday, but today he stayed home to try to address some issues here in the house. We discovered the refrigerator had zero refrigerant in it, so there is a leak somewhere. If we can find the leak, we can get it repaired and save a lot of money versus buying a new one. We are grateful for the loaner refrigerator while we sort this out. 

This doesn't look like much but it is a big deal to me. Our 12 volt lights, internet antenna and router are set up to run on battery power. The batteries are charged by solar panels, but they are not holding their charge well anymore so when the power is off or it is too cloudy our internet quickly begins to fail, followed by our back up lights. I was running up and down a ladder several times a day to turn the inverter off and reset the router to get internet back, or to turn it off altogether to try to conserve battery power for running the lights. David lowered the inverter today so that I can reach it without the ladder. That beautiful green light means we have internet! No more ladder in the hallway. Yaay! It’s the little things, folks. 

So, we are definitely not in America anymore. But we are doing well. Since this is our second term and not our first, now that the jet lag has worn off it does seem a lot easier to adjust. I know how to cook here already, how to pay bills, how to shop, how to run a generator, etc., so it doesn’t feel like a mountain of stuff is being thrown at me to learn and navigate. I already have friends and acquaintances here, which is a huge thing. During the last several months leading up to our furlough, David and I both had health issues we did not know about until we got to the states, but which were contributing to our mental and physical fatigue and stress and probably affecting how we (or at least I) related to our team. Thankfully, we have a very understanding  team, and we are both feeling much better now.

We’ve learned some things. Firstly, next time we go on furlough or an extended trip we will label where we store the parts for the water filter. That’s sort of important and at 1:00am after a flight across the ocean one’s memory is not what it should be. 


Secondly, I am learning to take better care of myself and to minimize stress as much as possible here so that I have more energy for my relationships with others and for the things I have to do. For example, we have one room that stays cooler than any other room in the house, so that is where we now have our home school day. It’s amazing the difference that ten degrees can make on a person’s overall well being and temperament after several hours each day! 

Robocops aside, life here is just as difficult for most Congolese as it was when we left last summer - maybe more so. The police are destroying the wares and stands of the roadside vendors in the name of "cleaning up and beautifying the city." There are new laws going into effect regarding what parts of the city the taxi buses are allowed to run in. Taxis are the primary mode of transportation for most people here. The prevailing attitude of those in power seems to be the end justifies the means without regard to who gets hurt in the process. Please continue to keep Congo in your prayers!

First Week of Furlough

MAF Office in Nampa

A week ago today in the wee hours of morning we landed in Boise, Idaho. It does not seem like a week has gone by! Already we have had some memorable moments:

* stepping off the plane in Brussels was like entering a portal to another world - "first world"

* hot water/showers, and actually feeling clean after we rinsed off

* hair that behaves

*people are so friendly and polite!

* driving! Oh my! Smooth roads, orderliness, street signs and street lights

* re-teaching my son to make microwave popcorn

*first time I put on a clean shirt and it smelled clean

* milk in a jug!

* pulling something out of the fridge that is actually COLD

* getting all our groceries, toiletries, etc at one store and finding everything (In reference to my post about what it might be like to go to Wal-mart, not much had changed really. I still had the entire floor plan memorized and had no trouble finding things. The big difference is that it took me twenty minutes to pick a deodorant, and the first time we went to Wal-mart, we came home with only two food items: milk and Oreos. We may have been tired but at least we had our priorities right.)

* While putting away groceries, someone forgot what crescent roll dough was and put it in the freezer. oops.

* one of my kids was the first of us to accidentally speak French to someone instead of English, and yes, the rest of us laughed

* INTERNET!!!

* getting to dry my clothes in a dryer!

* David mentioned the other day "No one in this family except me knows how to turn lights off." That made us realize that in our house in Kinshasa, it rarely mattered if the switches were on or off. It's hard to waste electricity when you don't have any.

We have all been to the doctor for physicals and are attending meetings/debriefings. Next week David has some training in the hangar and I hope to use that time to get a few much needed clothing items for the kids and me.

It has been a real treat to be in Nampa and see again our friends there. These are the people who work behind the scenes to help all of us who are on the field with everything from processing support gifts, writing literature and making our prayer cards, arranging our travel, raising funds to get us planes, helping us with insurance claims, training us, coaching us, processing our mail, and more. They pray for us, advise us, serve us and encourage us. Many of them have served overseas and know all the ins and outs and understand all that we experience. They know how weary we were when we arrived without us having to tell them and they have loved on us since we got here. I have met missionaries who do not have the kind of support that MAF gives to their missionaries and it makes a huge difference! If any of our Nampa friends are reading this, THANK YOU! We love you too!

Promised Pics, Preparing to Leave, and a Post by One of Our Pilots

As promised, here are pics from Emily’s graduation.  Sorry about the low quantity/quality.  A new camera is very high on my wish list for furlough. I think I may have even found the one I want. 

I love, love, love this photo of Emily and David!













We leave in a week! We’ve been going through all our stuff, getting rid of everything that doesn’t fit or doesn’t bless us or that we do not use. FLYlady would be so proud of me for finally doing this. I only read her book like ten years ago. In an act of ultimate irony I gave it away. Not because it didn’t bless me though. I was moving to Africa and got rid of hundreds of books. We could only bring so much with us. It was either the books or the kids. 

At least when we come back and unpack all this stuff, there will be less of it to deal with and it will all be useful, right? Of course, it will. We never really finished finding proper  places for it all after the last move because we still haven’t finished repairing and painting the house. There were always more pressing issues like burning wires and graduations and car repairs. High on my wish list for AFTER furlough is a more reliable car.

I’m almost afraid to say it, but we have had good electricity the last few days, which makes cleaning and packing a lot easier. We’ve had our other issues. Emily got sick. Now I am sick. The dryer broke, again, and will have to be replaced when we come back after furlough. You would THINK that during DRY season, laundry would dry quickly on the line because the humidity is lower, but it is just not working that way. At least no one has gotten any mango fly worms from our clothes. Yet. (more about mango fly larva, also known as tumbo flies, HERE .) That post about the tumbo flies goes all the way back to 2010 and as I read it I thought "It's no wonder we are tired and ready for a break after two and a half years of that craziness!" 

While we are preparing to leave, our friend and teammate Nick Frey is in Canada for a couple weeks and has written a great post for the MAF Blog (click HERE to read Nick's post) contrasting Kinshasa and Congo with life in a first world nation. His post is a great reminder the heart of MAF and why we are here. He's a pilot so he gets to see the physical isolation of people in Congo on a regular basis. Not so much for our family since we are always in Kinshasa, but we see first hand every day that even in this city of millions, people live in self-imposed isolation, whether intentional or not, behind their concrete walls, their emotional walls, their social status, and their fears and superstitions. Pray for Congo, for our pilots, mechanics, IT folks and national staff, and for our travels next week!

I've updated our Media Page with some new items!

I'm Sure He Will Thank Me Later

A pair of ASICS stability running shoes, model GEL-Kinsei (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Check this out: Kinetic Pavement. Some really smart people at a company called Pavegen in London have invented a floor tile that converts footfalls into electricity. They even have a long-term goal to make the tiles as affordable as ordinary floor tiles. I'm thinking we should put these in our house and yard. Then when the power is off I can make Daniel run laps to make the lights work. He could invite his friends over for a backyard marathon so I could even run the fridge or the washing machine. It would be a great incentive. "Listen kid, if you want me to bake cookies, you gotta go run so I can use the oven."

He wouldn't like it at first. But in a decade, when he becomes a world famous marathoner, he will thank me. :)

Home Alone and New Linkies

David (bottom) at work here in Kinshasa. Photo by David Francis

David has been in Lubumbashi for the last few days, doing a mini-inspection on a plane there. Even though we have been here two and a half years, this was my first time doing the single mom thing in Congo. He will be coming home late tonight and I will be very glad to see him. Power has been terrible, about two hours a day. Internet has been terrible. Someone left a toilet running over night so for part of the time water was an issue. And the cat has been sick. In fact I thought for a couple of days that Elliot was going to die.

The vet came and without examining my cat or taking any samples announced that it was worms. Elliot was lethargic, refusing to eat or drink, and couldn't even meow. I told him I didn't think it was worms because in the past when he had worms he ate an insane amount and his belly swelled and this time he was not eating at all. I also told him that we suspected he had eaten something poisonous or that he had gotten a kidney infection since he was also incontinent. The vet put him on antibiotics.

That was Monday. Yesterday Elliot got his meow back, although it sounds pathetic. And he is a little more active, meaning he will follow me out of the room now or jump up on my lap. He is drinking water and eating again but can't keep anything down so he is still losing weight. I am not sure what else to do for him.

Bug Freakout (Photo credit: betsystreeter)

Furlough is rapidly approaching and the reality of how much we still have to do in preparation is starting to make me feel a little panicky.








I have written a few times in the past about the plight of women in this country and about ministries here that are specifically for women. This week, Save the Children published a report of the world's best and worst places to be mothers, and Congo made the list. Click HERE to see what position DRC has in the list of 176 countries. Pray for the women and girls of Congo.

I added a few updates to our Media page. There are new articles, blog posts and videos for you to check out, including one about the importance and the cost of aircraft maintenance, which is what David does here.

**UPDATE Elliot is improving! He's super skinny but now that he is eating and holding his food down he should plump back up soon.

Languishing Brownies

Brownies (Photo credit: yum9me)

This could be an interesting post because I am so distracted. We HAD power today, so I made up a batch of brownie batter. I decided to be a cool mom and used the last of our Heath bits in the brownies. Popped them into the oven. A few minutes later the power went off. David went out to check the box since all of the neighbors have power and he has been gone awhile, which means something burnt up and we can't even run the generator. MY BROWNIES ARE LANGUISHING!!! 

This week I ordered limes from Papa Joseph. In French, lemons are "citrons" and limes are "citrons vertes (green)". This is a photo of locally grown produce. The little one is a lime and the big ones are lemons. See the problem with calling limes the green ones? They are ALL green. Papa Joseph misunderstood and I ended up with a bag of lemons. Lemons aren't as tasty as limes in my Coke, but they made good lemonade so we are just rolling with it. Interestingly, oranges here are also green, and yet they are still called oranges an no one seems to think that is weird.

Here's an update on our house. Yes, we are STILL working on the house. When we moved in, the plumbing in the kitchen had been repaired/replaced and there was a section behind the sink where the tiles were busted out; and there was a gap between the concrete wall and the countertop that I could put my hand into - which meant unwelcome guests could crawl through from the other side. This week we hired Leopold to fix the wall and I am very happy to have a whole wall in the kitchen now.





I managed to get some more sewing time and made some progress on Daniel's quilt top. I am using a pattern called Blissful Dreams that I purchased too many years ago from Down Home Quilting. I still have to add borders to it. Daniel asked me to hand quilt it instead of machine quilting it, so when I finish the top it will get packed away until after furlough. I don't plan to haul it across the ocean and then add backing and batting and haul it back. Apologies to my facebook friends who have already seen this.


***Here is a brownie update, because brownies are important. They are a little funny looking but I think they will taste just fine. Hooray for brownies! The neutral line in our box keeps burning up and we keep replacing it. This time it burned a bunch of stuff and David got it going temporarily but says he pretty much has to replace everything.

Wired

creation window (Photo credit: mtsofan)

I am becoming quite the "handy Andy." When sparks were flying out of our breaker box in the house a couple of weeks ago, I had two choices. Remove the burning wires, or do without my precious electricity until David got home. Round here, when the power is on, you don't waste it! So I got my nerve up and pulled this out of our box and set us up to run on just one phase until hubby could make repairs. Yes, I cut off the power before I touched the wires.


These wires couldn't take the heat. They frayed and burned, ending up useless and dangerous.

We have had a week of sickness. First Daniel, then Emily, now David. I am the "last man standing." We have also had a week of twice going over 48 hours without power and several days of only getting an hour or two at a time. Not having a/c is inconvenient in this heat, but when someone has a fever, it's miserable. I felt so sorry for the kids.



During Daniel's sick time, I had to run the generator anyway to keep the fridge cold, and since I wasn't home schooling I decided I might as well sew. Having finally finished making curtains for the living room (it only took two and a half years), I pulled out a quilt project.

This is going to be for Daniel, if I ever finish it. While I was in the states for my surgery he got to choose his own fabric. I finally completed all of the blocks. Now I just have to assemble them and add borders.

This one is my favorite and Daniel's too. Of course, it was also the one that took the most time and care because of all the points there were to match up. Half square triangles are not my strong point. I have to do them slowly and carefully.

 The closer we get to finishing it, the more eager Daniel and I both are to see how it will turn out.

There is just something about working at a project and really putting yourself into it, and then being able to look at the finished product and see its beauty that makes you feel really good. God understands that. It's why He keeps working on us, carefully and sometimes slowly - and doesn't stop until he completes the good work He started. It's why when He finished creating the world He took time to notice that it was good. We are just wired to get pleasure out of doing good work.

I hated that my family has been suffering with the fluish like bug that has hit them, but the forced down time has probably been good for us. We've rested. We've done things we don't usually get time for like reading and sewing. Maybe we were really feeling the heat, literally and figuratively, and about to burn up like those wires. Naturally, my idea of down time would have been different from God's. Mine would include electricity and high enough voltage to use my oven and my dryer, but then I would have filled that time with work, trying to catch up on laundry and bake ahead for the "no power days." It would have been "do time" instead of "down time."

Perspective

Today my husband related a story to me about his day at the hangar. He was talking with one of our national staff, who was asking David questions about our home.

"Do you have a water tank?"
"Yes."
"Do you have a generator?"
"Yes."
"Do you have solar panels?"
"Yes."
"Aaah. Paradise. Like heaven."

Perspective.

Something Better

African daisy photo credit: Jon Sullivan, www.public-domain-image.com

Someone sent a link to me for an article about sacrifice. When I read it, I cried. It just is not your typical write up or sermon about sacrifices where we are either told that we aren't willing enough to make sacrifices, that we don't make enough sacrifices, or that we should minimalize sacrifices we have made because we are somehow holier if we do not admit that serving God can sometimes be hard. Jesus came here prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice, his very life, for people who weren't even grateful, and He told us that following Him meant taking up a cross. I don't know about you but that sounds hard.

The writer, Rachel Pieh Jones, is not whining or bitter about sacrifices, but she is honest. She points out that a sacrifice is giving up something precious for something better down the road, and that if we deny the reality of the sacrifice, we cheapen the reward. If have ever loved a missionary or been one, her article, "Why I Will Not Say I Never Made A Sacrifice" is well worth the time.

Some days are hard here. I have only been overseas two years and I have lost three relatives and had to miss their funerals, I've missed the birth of my nephew, missed holidays and birthdays with loved ones, sent a son off to college 6,000 miles away, and missed my daughter's first day of school because I was across the ocean having surgery. The separation from my family and friends IS a sacrifice. The lack of water (none here for the last few days and right now we are out) and electricity and law and order ARE sacrifices. That's not whining. That's reality. Do I ever want to tell God the price is too high? Honestly, there have been a few moments when I did. But what if God had said that when He had to decide whether or not He would sacrifice his Son for me? What if Jesus had said it?

Some days though, I get a glimpse of that "something better" and I am in awe that He would use me here. It happened today during our annual Christmas outreach at the airport where my husband works with the rest of our MAF guys. We were all sitting in the hangar. A crowd was gathered to hear how and why Jesus came to earth, a choir was singing traditional praises to God in Lingala, and in the background, I could see one of our pilots taking off in an MAF plane. Other days it's a hug from an orphan, or a warm greeting from a vendor, or a laugh shared with someone. It could be a conversation about God with my guard or a report of lives given to Christ or a life saved. Some days it's just an amazing sunrise while I'm having coffee with God, as if He put on the whole show just for me.

We are incredibly grateful to be here. I won't deny there are sacrifices. But there is also "something better."

Three Things I am Grateful for that Might Surprise You

Like the flowers? Last night Emily played Annelle in her school's performance of Steel Magnolias and the flowers were a gift from the parents of one of the cast members. 

                                                                                                                                        I finished painting Daniel's room. If it looks like I painted it in the dark, that's because I did. The power kept going out. He's happy with it, so that's all that matters. 

I had a lot of blue fabric in my stash, so I made a throw rug for his room. Not only is Daniel happy, but I am very glad to be using my stash. I've told myself I can't buy more fabric until I use what I have, or at least most of it. The next rug will be for Emily's room.






There is a little rebel in me, so I have not participated in all the social media trends to post something you are thankful for every day for thirty days. I'm just not a jump-on-the-band-wagon type of gal. I love Thanksgiving. I believe we should be thankful consciously and intentionally every single day, not just in November. To be honest, doing anything every day for thirty days that involves internet and electricity is just too hard. I don't need one more thing on my list of things I am behind in. You know from my past posts that God has been working in my life in the area of gratitude. We are all grateful for the obvious blessings we have: loved ones, our relationship with Christ, our material blessings, etc. Here are three things that I am very grateful for that probably aren't on everyone's list of blessings this year.

1. People who know a lot about parasites and diseases in the Congo and how to deal with them. We have benefited from the wisdom of missionary doctors, nurses and friends more than once. Just last week we realized that what Daniel thought was a mosquito bite that would not go away was really a worm he had picked up going barefoot after a rain. The worm was making tunnels in his toe and foot and causing pain and itching. We could actually see where the little bugger had been. Gross. The Congolese I talked to use various methods to treat this, most involving razors. Another option is to freeze the worm but that only works if you freeze the right spot, and the worm is always ahead of the tracks you can see on the foot. There are drugs also, and we did manage to find a drug that took care of the problem. It is a huge blessing to be able to ask someone for advice here and to be able to trust their wisdom and experience.

2. The hard things my kids have to deal with. It hurts immensely to see them struggle and deal with pain and hardship, but my kids have more courage, flexibility, insight and compassion than they might have had if they had never gone to the places they have been, seen the things they have seen, or had the experiences and relationships they have had. God has used the hard things in their lives to bring out good things in their character and make them into amazing young people.

3. Randomness. I like predictability. I like knowing the plan and what the rules of the game are before I begin. But I am grateful for the randomness of things here, whether it is electricity, internet, water, transportation, or people. It makes me appreciate what I have when I have it and keeps me from being lazy. You've heard the expression "use it or lose it." At our house we say "Use it before you lose it!"

What are some unusual things you are thankful for? Why?

Wait Til It's Painted!

Slow internet, plus no electricity, plus a very low battery equals:  a very short blog post! I took this photo while we were in Kenya. There were construction projects everywhere, each surrounded by these corrugated tin fences and I thought it was hilarious! I couldn't capture the entire thing from a moving taxi with my camera, but it says "It doesn't look like much now, but wait til it's painted!" 

That's how we feel about our new home. There is not one square corner. Emily's room is a full foot shorter on one end than the other. We are working on plumbing and wiring and window latches and light fixtures. Every single room was yellow, and most had water damage on the walls. 

But, I am very please to have my bedroom almost completely finished! We've painted, and hung curtains. I just need to scrub the door and scrape up my paint splatters. This room is bigger than our old one so I think I will try to find a pot and get a plant.

The color is supposed to be grey with a hint of blue, but over the yellow paint it dried kind of a green-grey but I like it. 

I love my crooked house!

I'm getting the yellow warning that my battery is about to die. Yikes, I still have so much to talk about!  It will have to wait. I did write an article for the MAF blog that will be posted next week so I'll let y'all know when that's up. 

Life in a Construction Zone

I am writing this in our new home! Our friends who so graciously loaned us their home while we worked on ours returned yesterday, so we had to move our family. Since our house still needs a lot of work, we were given the option of moving to another temporary residence, but the entire family was tired of the moving and just wanted to be in our place, even if it meant living in a construction zone. So last night we spent our first night here. I thought I would post some "before" photos, and then later once we've made this place more homey, some "after" photos.

This is the back porch, off the kitchen and dining area.

Living room. As you can see, I have lots of curtains to sew. The awnings are nice because they help keep out some of the heat from the sun.

Dining area. We can't eat in it yet, but that's ok because I can't find my forks anyway.

This house has a lot of bathrooms. Nearly every fixture has to be repaired or replaced. This one is waiting for a new shower but the sink and toilet are finished.

Kitchen. I am very happy to be able to reach my cabinets! The guys hung them the way all cabinets should be hung, with the height of the person who will actually be using them in mind. It's so cool beans! No more dragging a stool all over the kitchen. Well, okay, I need a stool for the top shelves. To give you some perspective, David is taller than our refrigerator.
Our priorities are so obvious in this photo. I can't find pots and pans or silverware, but I know exactly where the Cokes and the coffee maker are. Now to get an outlet for that coffee maker.....

One of the kids' rooms. Both of their rooms are just waiting for paint and curtains.

Master bedroom. Also waiting for paint. All that wire is going to become our back up light source for when the power is out: solar panels will charge a battery pack and the batteries will provide power for the lights. The batteries are already running our internet antenna!

This will eventually be the office/sewing room/storage room. We no longer have a garage to store stuff or work in so for now it is where the guys are keeping their tools and supplies they need to fix the house.

This may not look like much, but it's beautiful to me! This is a new concrete foundation that will hold our water tower and reservoirs!

We have a lot that we are thankful for. We are in our own place, sleeping in our own beds. We had power and water last night. Good friends came yesterday and helped us clean our friend's home for her and another friend helped David get some work done on the new home.

There have been a lot of unforeseen obstacles causing our progress on the house to go slower than we anticipated. When I looked around yesterday at the broken, ruined things that need to be redone, I was reminded of Isaiah 58:11-12: "The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; You will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings." A lot of things are being rebuilt and restored in our home to make it not only functional, but a sanctuary and a source of blessing for our family and friends. I think it's a perfect picture of what God does in our hearts.