This past Saturday afternoon we made the final leg of our journey home. With the exception of some paperwork required by the college, our internship to East Africa is completed. Overall it was a very trying and rewarding 11 weeks. But the processing of what took place on this trip will take quite some time.
How does one explain to others a culture, place, and people who in some senses are vastly different from the average American? And how does one explain Spiritual differences between a country which was founded upon Christianity and a country which holds heavy roots in another major world religion that has been known to hate Christians? Or how does one explain to fellow Americans what it is like to spend 8 weeks in a country with overall few churches and most people living there do not know of God's Word in their heart language? These questions will resonate in our minds for a long time; and we know that some of these questions will not be resolved until we are truly home.
This week as we have been trying to get settled back into our apartment and preparing for the up coming semester the thought of being Home but Not Home came up again. We were able to survive for 8 weeks in Africa without any major long lasting effects on our health concerns. Praise God. However, this past Tuesday took a turn for the worse. I woke up and in just a few moments I was experiencing excruciating pain in my lower back. What did I do one might wonder? That is a great question because neither the doctor nor I can figure that out. He said I could have just twisted a certain way while sleeping not even knowing it and now be experiencing pain which may last for weeks. Thankfully after 3 days some of the drugs which the doctor has me on are starting to take effect (Praise the Lord!). But all this time I realize once again that I am Home but Not Home.
Thankfully, Scripture is very clear that as a believer we do have a home where "He (meaning Jesus) will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away" (Revelation 21:4).
It is at this time that we want to say "Thank you" to all of you who have supported and kept up with us on our internship; it has been an incredible experience to say the least. We could not have done it without your prayers and financial support. May God bless all of you as you continue to serve Him in a land that may be home for now as we are only passing through to Home beyond the clouds. A Home which will be filled with people from every tribe, every tongue and every nation; and when that day comes Scripture says the end will come (Matthew 24:14) and we will be home at last!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Monday, August 1, 2011
Translators' Training
Today started a 5 week long translators' training workshop. Even though we will only be able to take part in it for this week since we start to slowly make our way back to the States this weekend; for this time we are blessed with the opportunity to take part in something way bigger than we could ever imagine!!!
This morning we were met by 45 students, all anxious to learn how to translate God's Word. These 45 enthusiastic individuals represent literally millions of people who do not have a single portion of Scripture in their heart language. These individuals come from several countries here in East Africa and long to know the Truth which we can turn to easily. But often times the very Word which they long for we allow to become dusty on our book shelves.
In roughly 15 minutes from now (2 p.m. East African time which is roughly 7 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) Beth will be blessed with the opportunity of teaching for 1 1/2 hours some of these individuals on "The Qualities of a Good Translation." And then on Wednesday morning I will be honored to teach 2 lessons of 1 1/2 hours each on "How to Translate Biblical Key Words." These are words which are very rarely known among people who have no churches in their area (words like propitiation, antichrist, faith, etc).
We ask that you would please be in prayer for this training.
This morning we were met by 45 students, all anxious to learn how to translate God's Word. These 45 enthusiastic individuals represent literally millions of people who do not have a single portion of Scripture in their heart language. These individuals come from several countries here in East Africa and long to know the Truth which we can turn to easily. But often times the very Word which they long for we allow to become dusty on our book shelves.
In roughly 15 minutes from now (2 p.m. East African time which is roughly 7 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) Beth will be blessed with the opportunity of teaching for 1 1/2 hours some of these individuals on "The Qualities of a Good Translation." And then on Wednesday morning I will be honored to teach 2 lessons of 1 1/2 hours each on "How to Translate Biblical Key Words." These are words which are very rarely known among people who have no churches in their area (words like propitiation, antichrist, faith, etc).
We ask that you would please be in prayer for this training.
- Pray for the students that they would be able to comprehend and retain the material in which they are learning. Pray also that these individuals would stand strong in their faith in Jesus Christ as they return to areas where they may face persecution for their decision to follow God's leading of bringing God's Word into their language.
- Pray for the people groups whom these students represent: that they would be prepared to encounter God's Word in their language; that they are receptive to it and that many of these people will come to Christ.
- Pray all of the teachers of these 45 students: that God would guide us through our lessons.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My!
This past Monday and Tuesday we spent in a wild game park and loved it! I kept asking Matt if we could stay there for the remaining time that we have here. What an incredible place! We stayed right in the game park on a hill in tents that were on a platform and with an additional thatch roof. These tents had running water, electricity and hardwood floors, not to mention a huge deck on the front so that we could view the wildlife right from our own veranda. It was awesome to say the least!
We had a Masai guard who walked the premises at night and escorted everyone to/from their tents after dark (the Masai are nomads who wander around through several countries herding their cattle as they please - I suspect that they may even go through the game park region with nothing but a stick for protection. The nationals even at times stop and comment on them as though they were a tourist.).
The elephants here are not like the ones in India or other places where they will allow a person to ride them like a horse or have them as a pet. These elephants are WILD and prefer to stay that way. These types of elephants have been known to wander through this tent-hotel area along with many other exotic and highly creatures. In fact a leopard killed an impala right in front of where we were staying a couple of nights before we arrived. And in case you are wondering, the nationals consider the leopard as the king of the jungle. They say this because a lion will come into a flock, kill 1 animal, and take it off to eat it. A leopard on the other hand will come in and kill the whole flock then just take 1 of them away to eat. They have also been known for attacking and killing more people than the lions even though the lions are more abundant and larger.
Anyways, as we drove around the park, we got to see lots of impalas (you could say that we saw seas of them), giraffes, elephants, wildebeest, warthogs, small jackals, baboons, zebras, 2 crocodiles, one leopard and 5 lionesses among others. Some of the elephants were up close - one was just on the other side of a tall spot of grass -- less than 10 feet from our SUV. We tried to get some pictures of it, but it was hard to see it through the grass. Even still we were able to see its large ivory tusks staring us down, and were concerned that if we upset it, we'd be in serious trouble (An elephant this size would have no problem flipping over our mid-sized SUV with 4 people in it)!
Oh, about the cats... two of them (a single lioness and the leopard) we saw at dusk as we were high-tailing it back to camp since we can't be out after dark. The others we saw in pairs - two lionesses were at a fresh kill of a giraffe. Both of them were out cold! The one was so funny, it was on its back as though it wanted its tummy scratched. We drove up right next to it (about 10 feet from it), and it didn't care! Occasionally we could see them blink or twitch their ears to shew away a fly but that was it. The other two lionesses we saw the next day, and this time they were awake, sitting on top of a lump of dirt next to a watering hole and again they really didn't care how close we got for pictures. Then again, some of the interns who were in the SUV behind us thought they could see the lionesses licking their lips getting ready for fresh missionary meat! Oh My!
I forgot to mention that we got to see some hippos in their pond. You know, they are fascinating creatures. They are nocturnal and VERY dangerous when they're out and about, but fairly safe when sleeping. The pond they were in was deep enough to totally cover them, but every so often they'd come up for air. From what our hostess at the hotel was saying, they can stay underwater for 5-7 minutes between breaths, and even though they're sleeping, their body will see that they rise to the top for a breath and then plunge back into the water. As we were watching them, occasionally they'd come up and give us a great big yawn before going back down. They're doing this to get their metabolism back up to normal as they wake up and prepare to go out for the night. You know, it's just like God to create something so fascinating as the hippo whose body will rise it up out of the water so that it can get a breath even though it's fast asleep.
Overall this trip to the game park was an amazing chance to marvel at God's creation! Only He could have invented each of the creatures with their majestic characteristics which are so diverse as what we have seen from the lizards that are only an inch or two long and extremely fearful of all other creatures to elephants, lions, and leopards which have very few concerns (especially since it is illegal to hunt them here). Then to view the gentle grace by which the giraffes walk to the seemingly effortless speed of the impalas. Literally all of creation lives to testify of the greatness of our God!
P.S. Africa does not have any tigers or bears in case you were wondering. Oh well, the rest of the animals were fun to observe!
Sunday, July 24, 2011
No monkey business allowed
Over the last several weeks on the missionfield most Saturdays have been free days to just "relax" and have some fun. For the majority of these days, the "relaxation" we've taken part of has consisted of playing ultimate frisbee at an internationl language school about 15-20 minutes away from our home base with several other missionaries in this area of East Africa. (Of course last Saturday I got to hike one of the surrounding mountains--what a trip! P.S. If you normally listen to me preach on a regular bases I am sure you'll hear a lot about that adventure but those stories are for another day.)
Anyways back to our day in the park at the international language school. We got out there and were enjoying a good game of frisbee with my beautiful bride cheering our team on from the sidelines when her attention suddenly shifted to someone else who decided to join us in the park. This guest was about 18 inches to 2 foot tall, and had a tail which was almost equally as long. This animal we'll just say likes to eat bananas if you're following my drift; and we will call his name "Sam." Well anyhow Sam decided that he was thirsty so since all of us who were out playing frisbee had left our water bottles on the benches off the field, he thought no one would mind if he had a drink. This was when Beth stepped into the picture and tried to get Sam to leave the water bottle which was about 4 feet from her alone. But of course he had to come up and greet her from about 2 feet away. So after our fury friend's formal introduction to Mrs. Beth he went up into the trees where one would think he belonged. (In case your curious: yes everyone playing frisbee watched the whole thing happen from the field.)
Back to the game for us--so we thought (someone else was playing a game of their own and we were his opponents unbeknown to us). We played hard on the field until it was time for a water break which was when round number 2 began. And now Sam was in it to win it. Here we are enjoying our refreshments and he starts jumping up onto a couple of the kids who were with us. This was terrifying for them to say the least. Even though we see a lot of Sam's kind around, most of them are extremely fearful of humans since people tend to kill them (illegally mind you) because they destroy gardens and other types of crops which people farm for a living--not to mention on the black market their meat I'm told goes for a pretty penny. Thus we tend to see them up in the trees and occasionally on roof tops (yes we have heard and seen them in the early morning on top of our hosts' house - they've woke us up several times when jumping on the roof above us). Plus these animals are considered to be vehement-- some have been known to have rabies.
After several minutes of watching our fury friend named "Sam" from a close distance and several adults monitoring his interaction with the children, he left again; so we went back to frisbee for the third time. But now it was too late for one of the kids who would just as soon stay in the car until we were done playing frisbee than take their chances with Sam.
Round number 3: with the majority of the adults back on the field Sam decided it was time to come back but this time he came with his owner. The gentleman told us that Sam became on orphan when he was about a month old. Here in this country of East Africa there is a lot of power lines which are being added thus a lot of trees are being cut down. So this certain man decided to have a rather unique fury pet. And now Sam was about 9 months and very friendly, thus he just wanted some attention--he wanted someone who would spend some time with him.
As I reflect on our monkeying around on one Saturday in East Africa, I can't help but think about something which will begin on August 1st. August 1st begins a month long religious holy month for a major world religion; and this is no monkey business. This just happens to be a really big deal for us. We are currently in a country which has about 1/3 of its people who follow such beliefs. During this time the spiritual warfare which is already obvious, will get much worse, so no monkey business is allowed!
The souls of millions here in this country need our attention. We can't be afraid that they might bite us and give us rabies like a monkey might. They need our prayers. Please join us in praying that God would lead these people into circumstances which would open their hearts to the lies they have been living under and the truth of God's Word. Please pray for the wisdom of the missionaries and other Christian workers here as we seek to reach them for Jesus Christ. Please pray that the powers of the evil one are not able to get a stronghold in any of the missionaries lives, but that the Word of God would be victorious. This will be a long-term battle which will probably take more than 3 rounds like we experienced with someone named "Sam."
Please also pray for the translator's workshop which begins on August 1st as well. This will be a workshop to train individuals interested in becoming national Bible translators from several areas here in East Africa. The majority of these individuals will be working on translations in areas which are dominated by this other major world religion. Therefore I encourage you to join us in this spiritual battle for “our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places (Eph. 6:12);” so there is no monkey business allowed in this war.
Anyways back to our day in the park at the international language school. We got out there and were enjoying a good game of frisbee with my beautiful bride cheering our team on from the sidelines when her attention suddenly shifted to someone else who decided to join us in the park. This guest was about 18 inches to 2 foot tall, and had a tail which was almost equally as long. This animal we'll just say likes to eat bananas if you're following my drift; and we will call his name "Sam." Well anyhow Sam decided that he was thirsty so since all of us who were out playing frisbee had left our water bottles on the benches off the field, he thought no one would mind if he had a drink. This was when Beth stepped into the picture and tried to get Sam to leave the water bottle which was about 4 feet from her alone. But of course he had to come up and greet her from about 2 feet away. So after our fury friend's formal introduction to Mrs. Beth he went up into the trees where one would think he belonged. (In case your curious: yes everyone playing frisbee watched the whole thing happen from the field.)
Back to the game for us--so we thought (someone else was playing a game of their own and we were his opponents unbeknown to us). We played hard on the field until it was time for a water break which was when round number 2 began. And now Sam was in it to win it. Here we are enjoying our refreshments and he starts jumping up onto a couple of the kids who were with us. This was terrifying for them to say the least. Even though we see a lot of Sam's kind around, most of them are extremely fearful of humans since people tend to kill them (illegally mind you) because they destroy gardens and other types of crops which people farm for a living--not to mention on the black market their meat I'm told goes for a pretty penny. Thus we tend to see them up in the trees and occasionally on roof tops (yes we have heard and seen them in the early morning on top of our hosts' house - they've woke us up several times when jumping on the roof above us). Plus these animals are considered to be vehement-- some have been known to have rabies.
After several minutes of watching our fury friend named "Sam" from a close distance and several adults monitoring his interaction with the children, he left again; so we went back to frisbee for the third time. But now it was too late for one of the kids who would just as soon stay in the car until we were done playing frisbee than take their chances with Sam.
Round number 3: with the majority of the adults back on the field Sam decided it was time to come back but this time he came with his owner. The gentleman told us that Sam became on orphan when he was about a month old. Here in this country of East Africa there is a lot of power lines which are being added thus a lot of trees are being cut down. So this certain man decided to have a rather unique fury pet. And now Sam was about 9 months and very friendly, thus he just wanted some attention--he wanted someone who would spend some time with him.
As I reflect on our monkeying around on one Saturday in East Africa, I can't help but think about something which will begin on August 1st. August 1st begins a month long religious holy month for a major world religion; and this is no monkey business. This just happens to be a really big deal for us. We are currently in a country which has about 1/3 of its people who follow such beliefs. During this time the spiritual warfare which is already obvious, will get much worse, so no monkey business is allowed!
The souls of millions here in this country need our attention. We can't be afraid that they might bite us and give us rabies like a monkey might. They need our prayers. Please join us in praying that God would lead these people into circumstances which would open their hearts to the lies they have been living under and the truth of God's Word. Please pray for the wisdom of the missionaries and other Christian workers here as we seek to reach them for Jesus Christ. Please pray that the powers of the evil one are not able to get a stronghold in any of the missionaries lives, but that the Word of God would be victorious. This will be a long-term battle which will probably take more than 3 rounds like we experienced with someone named "Sam."
Please also pray for the translator's workshop which begins on August 1st as well. This will be a workshop to train individuals interested in becoming national Bible translators from several areas here in East Africa. The majority of these individuals will be working on translations in areas which are dominated by this other major world religion. Therefore I encourage you to join us in this spiritual battle for “our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places (Eph. 6:12);” so there is no monkey business allowed in this war.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Wazungu (white people)
Wazungu: this was a word which we heard a lot as we were in the village. Most people in the village are not used to seeing us white people. Thus anytime a native African in the village saw a white person they would start yelling WAZUNGU! WAZUNGU! at the top of their lungs.
Normally we would just smile and wave not really knowing how to respond to them otherwise. It is not even like this is a racist comment as many might expect because most Africans are extremely friendly to us Americans. This is true even for those who are of a religion counter to ours (meaning one that can be hostile to us in other areas).
We must say the kids in the village were incredible. They would see us, yell WAZUNGU, and then want to come be with us. We would tell them ‘Piga tano’ (give me 5) and they would smack our hands and start laughing. Then they would hold our hands, with others holding their hand to the point of taking up the entire road! They just wanted to spend time with us. It has been a lot of fun playing with these kids! They are very welcoming to all, laughing at our attempts to speak at them, and love to play games. We really have enjoyed ourselves.
When we ponder these things that we have experienced as whites, we can't help but wonder: why? Why do the Africans treat us like this? What is it about a few white people that fascinate them to the point of wanting to be with us and not avoid us as we might a person of a different ethnicity, especially if we can’t understand them clearly?
After thinking about this for quite some time we finally realized the answer: hope! We offer hope to them. Even if they don't physically hear the Gospel message from us they know that we are here for something special--them. They know that we have things that they desire. Granted, to them, we are rich in worldly goods. Even the poorest American is--if you don't agree with this thought take some time to seriously reread and ponder the living conditions of our previous blog called "Time in the Village." But beyond physical goods we have a wealth in Jesus Christ that is beyond comprehension.
The question for us is: how do we convey this truth to them? How do we tell them that Jesus loves them and that He died for them? How do we tell them that they can have hope both here and now, and in the life to come?
This was a question which we have personally struggled with for about the first 2-3 weeks of being here. We have not really had the time to grasp the language spoken here - Swahili. We have been busy with dictionary workshops, and helping the translators here on the compound or in their homes. Then again, most coming to learn Swahili spend at least 4 months in language school doing nothing but focusing upon learning the language – we don’t have that kind of time.
After much prayer we have come to peace with the answer to this question. For me personally--it has been by preaching the Word. I have preached twice thus far; once at a church that had about 60-70 people in attendance through a translator. Two people came forward during the time of invitation that day, and many others spoke of how God touched them through His Word.
The second time was at a church which was mainly of expatriates and held in English. (An expatriate is some one who is from another country--usually missionaries, relief workers, etc.). This day may have felt a little like preaching to the choir, but we knew that God was encouraging the troops to get back in the battle. This was confirmed by comments made after the service.
An additional difference both Beth and I are able to make while we are here may not have an immediate impact on the lives around us today, but can in the future. One of our responsibilities has been to do the research necessary to write New Testament introductions. Basically these introductions are the information which some of the nicer study Bibles include at the beginning of the different books.
These introductions are needed since most of these language groups have no literature which could help them to understand the Scriptures which are being published for them.
These introductions which we are working on will be going into at least 15 different languages here in East Africa, if not be used for the majority of the New Testaments being published throughout Africa. Thus far I have completed 1 & 2 Peter, Jude, and Revelation. I should have the Gospel of Matthew done sometime later today; while Beth is just about done with 1, 2, & 3 John and will be working on John’s gospel shortly. Lord willing, we will be able to complete the majority of the New Testament books before we leave.
Please be in prayer that God would enable these introductions to be completed and that they would help open the eyes of the people of Africa to His Word. Also be in prayer for Sunday July 24 as I preach at a church which is mainly composed of East African college students in English, and Sunday July 31 as I preach through a translator at a church which was recently started here in East Africa. I know that with God’s help there are a few wazungu who can bring hope into the lives of people here in East Africa.
****
Praises and Prayer Requests:
Praise God:
• The ability to see God’s work being accomplished
• Health and safety of our team, and missionaries
• The name of Jesus Christ is being proclaimed throughout the world!
Prayer Requests:
• Matt’s upcoming sermons
• Preparations for the translator’s workshop might be completed, and we will have a good turn out for this event. The translator’s workshop is where nationals come in to be trained to become national Bible translators who work alongside the missionaries to translate God’s word into their language.
• For both Matt and Beth as they prepare to teach in this workshop.
Normally we would just smile and wave not really knowing how to respond to them otherwise. It is not even like this is a racist comment as many might expect because most Africans are extremely friendly to us Americans. This is true even for those who are of a religion counter to ours (meaning one that can be hostile to us in other areas).
We must say the kids in the village were incredible. They would see us, yell WAZUNGU, and then want to come be with us. We would tell them ‘Piga tano’ (give me 5) and they would smack our hands and start laughing. Then they would hold our hands, with others holding their hand to the point of taking up the entire road! They just wanted to spend time with us. It has been a lot of fun playing with these kids! They are very welcoming to all, laughing at our attempts to speak at them, and love to play games. We really have enjoyed ourselves.
When we ponder these things that we have experienced as whites, we can't help but wonder: why? Why do the Africans treat us like this? What is it about a few white people that fascinate them to the point of wanting to be with us and not avoid us as we might a person of a different ethnicity, especially if we can’t understand them clearly?
After thinking about this for quite some time we finally realized the answer: hope! We offer hope to them. Even if they don't physically hear the Gospel message from us they know that we are here for something special--them. They know that we have things that they desire. Granted, to them, we are rich in worldly goods. Even the poorest American is--if you don't agree with this thought take some time to seriously reread and ponder the living conditions of our previous blog called "Time in the Village." But beyond physical goods we have a wealth in Jesus Christ that is beyond comprehension.
The question for us is: how do we convey this truth to them? How do we tell them that Jesus loves them and that He died for them? How do we tell them that they can have hope both here and now, and in the life to come?
This was a question which we have personally struggled with for about the first 2-3 weeks of being here. We have not really had the time to grasp the language spoken here - Swahili. We have been busy with dictionary workshops, and helping the translators here on the compound or in their homes. Then again, most coming to learn Swahili spend at least 4 months in language school doing nothing but focusing upon learning the language – we don’t have that kind of time.
After much prayer we have come to peace with the answer to this question. For me personally--it has been by preaching the Word. I have preached twice thus far; once at a church that had about 60-70 people in attendance through a translator. Two people came forward during the time of invitation that day, and many others spoke of how God touched them through His Word.
The second time was at a church which was mainly of expatriates and held in English. (An expatriate is some one who is from another country--usually missionaries, relief workers, etc.). This day may have felt a little like preaching to the choir, but we knew that God was encouraging the troops to get back in the battle. This was confirmed by comments made after the service.
An additional difference both Beth and I are able to make while we are here may not have an immediate impact on the lives around us today, but can in the future. One of our responsibilities has been to do the research necessary to write New Testament introductions. Basically these introductions are the information which some of the nicer study Bibles include at the beginning of the different books.
These introductions are needed since most of these language groups have no literature which could help them to understand the Scriptures which are being published for them.
These introductions which we are working on will be going into at least 15 different languages here in East Africa, if not be used for the majority of the New Testaments being published throughout Africa. Thus far I have completed 1 & 2 Peter, Jude, and Revelation. I should have the Gospel of Matthew done sometime later today; while Beth is just about done with 1, 2, & 3 John and will be working on John’s gospel shortly. Lord willing, we will be able to complete the majority of the New Testament books before we leave.
Please be in prayer that God would enable these introductions to be completed and that they would help open the eyes of the people of Africa to His Word. Also be in prayer for Sunday July 24 as I preach at a church which is mainly composed of East African college students in English, and Sunday July 31 as I preach through a translator at a church which was recently started here in East Africa. I know that with God’s help there are a few wazungu who can bring hope into the lives of people here in East Africa.
****
Praises and Prayer Requests:
Praise God:
• The ability to see God’s work being accomplished
• Health and safety of our team, and missionaries
• The name of Jesus Christ is being proclaimed throughout the world!
Prayer Requests:
• Matt’s upcoming sermons
• Preparations for the translator’s workshop might be completed, and we will have a good turn out for this event. The translator’s workshop is where nationals come in to be trained to become national Bible translators who work alongside the missionaries to translate God’s word into their language.
• For both Matt and Beth as they prepare to teach in this workshop.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Time in the Village
Well, I'm sure you're wondering by now, ... did we survive the village stay? Yes, we lived! Actually, we had a great experience. If we didn't mention it, we got to stay a couple of nights in a village 2 hours from where we've been living while one of the missionaries needed to go to the village to finish an interlinear of the book of Romans. So, basically, we got to 'rough it' for a couple of days (no power, running water, etc.).
Basically this means that the national translators* have worked through Romans translating it into their language from a Swahili translation. Then the missionary joins them and works to back-translate their work from their heart language into Swahili and ultimately into English. This is then tested in a number of ways including comparing it with the original language of Romans (Greek), and a consultant** check as well.
While we did have the option to observe the missionary and national translators for a little while, we also understood that the majority of the time we wouldn't understand what's going on since it is all in Swahili, and they needed their space to finish their work, plus we have been able to help in some of this work back at the main compound we have been working at. So one of the national translators was given the job of being our tour guide/host, and he was a very hospitable host at that!
The first day we arrived, we barely had time to unload our stuff (which some of the village people took, placed on their heads and tromped off into the maze of houses, pig pens, small gardens, etc. to some unknown location), and we were off to see some of the village. He took us for a hike up along a mountain stream which was beautiful, paused for a couple of minutes at a market before going off to another little settlement/school area to see their football (soccer field) area. Along the way, he showed us buildings/areas of other missions, or attempt at relief work that had come through, some being 50-100 years old! While at the soccer field, a couple of the interns and our host passed a soccer ball around hoping that others would join them. Since that didn't work out, we were off again - this time to our host's home, but along the way we had to stop by and visit a hospital.
For lunch, we stopped at a back-alley 'restaurant' where our missionary ordered us some rice, beans and dugal (minnows that had thankfully been beheaded). Matt was able to eat them, and thought that they were ok, but I was grossed out by even seeing their tiny bodies sitting on top of the rice. YUMMY! I've heard that they are like little pockets of salt, and their head if it wasn't removed tends to just be a pocket of sand. mmm mmm good....
Supper was a different story. We ate at our host's place and got to help prepare the rice, beans and fish (this style of fish was actually about size of a small bluegill which had been dried - head, fins and skin still attached). But since there was only four fish, I was able to get out of having one! Praise God!! Though Matt liked both of the types fish.
Matt and I got to stay with the national translator himself while two others stayed at different houses - family members (the other didn't want to stay in the village and instead slept in a 'hotel' not to far away).
Shortly after our host saw that we were up and moving, he want to get the other two, then we all went to the market to find our breakfast - cassava and sweet potatoes which were boiled with a little salt. By the way, their usual time for eating chai (breakfast and tea) is 10:30.
Then, another intern and I stayed with the missionary to see their work and because we didn't feel comfortable/bring the right shoes to climb the mountain. The other three got to climb a very steep mountain for an hour or so to see the village where everyone from the market comes from.
That evening we returned to our host's home and got to help fix pilao (a rice with garlic, onions and other flavorings) with some greens and meat. It gets dark here around 6:30, and since it takes so long to prepare and cook the food, we ended up eating in the dark, sometimes around 8:15, so shortly after supper we would usually turn in for the night.
The third and final day we got to stay with them, we didn't go to the market, but ate breakfast early - around 8:00 AM since we had a lot to do. Shortly after that we were off to visit a sugar cane factory (after a lengthy process of going through different levels of authority we were told that we needed a 2 week notice), and the village where our host does his field testing.***
While visiting the village, we also dropped into a Catholic school where we sat and chatted with the priest and some of the nuns for a while. Then we were off again right at the time the kids were getting out of school for the day so they walked with us, playing and eventually holding our hands - there was a string of children holding hands with Matt, myself and another intern!
After leaving the village we then returned to our hosts' home for lunch and to pack-up our stuff and return to where the missionary is working. After the missionary was finished we all loaded back into the truck and returned home.
In case you're wondering, since we didn't have running water/power, how did we live? Well, we used flashlights when preparing/eating meals; and the meals were cooked over a fire or a small coal cooker. Otherwise, since we didn't have running water, we had a community squatty potty which was a couple of houses down from our host. This is as it sounds; it isn't like the outhouses that we used to have with a seat, but basically a hole in the ground with bricks on either side for standing on. There are walls, but you're not totally concealed.
Speaking of being concealed, there's the joyous experience of taking a bath. Our host graciously provided water - actually warm water over the fire for us to take a bath with, but the location really didn't provide any privacy. There were some walls, but they were about waist high or lower, and the entrance had no covering so the other interns, host, etc. had to turn their backs so they wouldn't be exposed. Praise God that our bath time was at night, but even so, our white skin can stick out at times, and the people living in this village are used to wandering around at night without flashlights, could they see us??? Good question—it is a possibility.
Both as we were traveling to and from the village we got to go through a national wildlife preserve. From the road we were able to see several exotic animals. We saw gazelles, elephants, giraffes, zebras, etc. (I would talk about the monkeys but those are about as common everywhere over here as dogs and cats are in the States.) It was quite an adventure to say the least. We are also looking forward to 2 weeks from now when we will get to go back just to see some of God’s creation. (We are praying that we will get to see some lions. While they are in the park they are harder to see.)
*A National Translator in Africa - is an African individual who works to translate Scripture from the trade language (Swahili in our case) into their mother tongue. They've had up to 4 years of training before they can fully participate in the work. The missionary then works with them to test the translation through a number of checks from the original language (Greek or Hebrew), then writing an interlinear, field testing, consultant checking and more (it is definitely an extensive process to say the least). Typically there is a team of three national translators per language group.
**Consultant - is often times an individual who has a Ph.D. and/or someone who has already completed a translation of Scripture into another language. This individual will check the translation, looking for tough theological terms such as bloodguilt, propitiation, etc. to ensure that the translation is an accurate representation of Scripture's original intent.
***Field testing - a method of checking the translation to ensure an accurate and smooth/natural translation. The translation needs to be understandable by the common person. If it is too literal most will not comprehend its meaning and then they will avoid reading Scripture. And if the translation is too much of a paraphrase then it will lose its original intent.
P.S. Before I forget, I've played around with the settings some on the comments, so I think the troubles that you've been having should be taken care of. Please let us know if you're still having problems and we'll try to get it figured out. Thanks for being patient with us.
This has been what a day in the village has been like. It wasn’t too terrible, and praise God we did survive. Actually, we enjoyed the blessing of getting to meet some of the national translators, see where they got to do their field testing, discover others who had come before (other religious organizations and relief efforts). But what truly was a blessing was the chance to interact with the people of Africa – to meet the adults, see where they live and play with the kids – actually they had a lot of fun laughing at us as we tried to speak Swahili to them. Blessings.
Basically this means that the national translators* have worked through Romans translating it into their language from a Swahili translation. Then the missionary joins them and works to back-translate their work from their heart language into Swahili and ultimately into English. This is then tested in a number of ways including comparing it with the original language of Romans (Greek), and a consultant** check as well.
While we did have the option to observe the missionary and national translators for a little while, we also understood that the majority of the time we wouldn't understand what's going on since it is all in Swahili, and they needed their space to finish their work, plus we have been able to help in some of this work back at the main compound we have been working at. So one of the national translators was given the job of being our tour guide/host, and he was a very hospitable host at that!
The first day we arrived, we barely had time to unload our stuff (which some of the village people took, placed on their heads and tromped off into the maze of houses, pig pens, small gardens, etc. to some unknown location), and we were off to see some of the village. He took us for a hike up along a mountain stream which was beautiful, paused for a couple of minutes at a market before going off to another little settlement/school area to see their football (soccer field) area. Along the way, he showed us buildings/areas of other missions, or attempt at relief work that had come through, some being 50-100 years old! While at the soccer field, a couple of the interns and our host passed a soccer ball around hoping that others would join them. Since that didn't work out, we were off again - this time to our host's home, but along the way we had to stop by and visit a hospital.
For lunch, we stopped at a back-alley 'restaurant' where our missionary ordered us some rice, beans and dugal (minnows that had thankfully been beheaded). Matt was able to eat them, and thought that they were ok, but I was grossed out by even seeing their tiny bodies sitting on top of the rice. YUMMY! I've heard that they are like little pockets of salt, and their head if it wasn't removed tends to just be a pocket of sand. mmm mmm good....
Supper was a different story. We ate at our host's place and got to help prepare the rice, beans and fish (this style of fish was actually about size of a small bluegill which had been dried - head, fins and skin still attached). But since there was only four fish, I was able to get out of having one! Praise God!! Though Matt liked both of the types fish.
Matt and I got to stay with the national translator himself while two others stayed at different houses - family members (the other didn't want to stay in the village and instead slept in a 'hotel' not to far away).
Shortly after our host saw that we were up and moving, he want to get the other two, then we all went to the market to find our breakfast - cassava and sweet potatoes which were boiled with a little salt. By the way, their usual time for eating chai (breakfast and tea) is 10:30.
Then, another intern and I stayed with the missionary to see their work and because we didn't feel comfortable/bring the right shoes to climb the mountain. The other three got to climb a very steep mountain for an hour or so to see the village where everyone from the market comes from.
That evening we returned to our host's home and got to help fix pilao (a rice with garlic, onions and other flavorings) with some greens and meat. It gets dark here around 6:30, and since it takes so long to prepare and cook the food, we ended up eating in the dark, sometimes around 8:15, so shortly after supper we would usually turn in for the night.
The third and final day we got to stay with them, we didn't go to the market, but ate breakfast early - around 8:00 AM since we had a lot to do. Shortly after that we were off to visit a sugar cane factory (after a lengthy process of going through different levels of authority we were told that we needed a 2 week notice), and the village where our host does his field testing.***
While visiting the village, we also dropped into a Catholic school where we sat and chatted with the priest and some of the nuns for a while. Then we were off again right at the time the kids were getting out of school for the day so they walked with us, playing and eventually holding our hands - there was a string of children holding hands with Matt, myself and another intern!
After leaving the village we then returned to our hosts' home for lunch and to pack-up our stuff and return to where the missionary is working. After the missionary was finished we all loaded back into the truck and returned home.
In case you're wondering, since we didn't have running water/power, how did we live? Well, we used flashlights when preparing/eating meals; and the meals were cooked over a fire or a small coal cooker. Otherwise, since we didn't have running water, we had a community squatty potty which was a couple of houses down from our host. This is as it sounds; it isn't like the outhouses that we used to have with a seat, but basically a hole in the ground with bricks on either side for standing on. There are walls, but you're not totally concealed.
Speaking of being concealed, there's the joyous experience of taking a bath. Our host graciously provided water - actually warm water over the fire for us to take a bath with, but the location really didn't provide any privacy. There were some walls, but they were about waist high or lower, and the entrance had no covering so the other interns, host, etc. had to turn their backs so they wouldn't be exposed. Praise God that our bath time was at night, but even so, our white skin can stick out at times, and the people living in this village are used to wandering around at night without flashlights, could they see us??? Good question—it is a possibility.
Both as we were traveling to and from the village we got to go through a national wildlife preserve. From the road we were able to see several exotic animals. We saw gazelles, elephants, giraffes, zebras, etc. (I would talk about the monkeys but those are about as common everywhere over here as dogs and cats are in the States.) It was quite an adventure to say the least. We are also looking forward to 2 weeks from now when we will get to go back just to see some of God’s creation. (We are praying that we will get to see some lions. While they are in the park they are harder to see.)
*A National Translator in Africa - is an African individual who works to translate Scripture from the trade language (Swahili in our case) into their mother tongue. They've had up to 4 years of training before they can fully participate in the work. The missionary then works with them to test the translation through a number of checks from the original language (Greek or Hebrew), then writing an interlinear, field testing, consultant checking and more (it is definitely an extensive process to say the least). Typically there is a team of three national translators per language group.
**Consultant - is often times an individual who has a Ph.D. and/or someone who has already completed a translation of Scripture into another language. This individual will check the translation, looking for tough theological terms such as bloodguilt, propitiation, etc. to ensure that the translation is an accurate representation of Scripture's original intent.
***Field testing - a method of checking the translation to ensure an accurate and smooth/natural translation. The translation needs to be understandable by the common person. If it is too literal most will not comprehend its meaning and then they will avoid reading Scripture. And if the translation is too much of a paraphrase then it will lose its original intent.
P.S. Before I forget, I've played around with the settings some on the comments, so I think the troubles that you've been having should be taken care of. Please let us know if you're still having problems and we'll try to get it figured out. Thanks for being patient with us.
This has been what a day in the village has been like. It wasn’t too terrible, and praise God we did survive. Actually, we enjoyed the blessing of getting to meet some of the national translators, see where they got to do their field testing, discover others who had come before (other religious organizations and relief efforts). But what truly was a blessing was the chance to interact with the people of Africa – to meet the adults, see where they live and play with the kids – actually they had a lot of fun laughing at us as we tried to speak Swahili to them. Blessings.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
A Morning in the Market
Since the language conference is winding down on things for us to do, we took a day and explored the market. There are different 'shopping zones' of the downtown area. There is one section that has many tiny stores to walk in and select what you're looking for (these range from groceries, electronics, furniture, clothing, etc.). This isn't too far off from some of our shopping experiences in America. However, the market is a completely different story. There is a section of town where farmers come with their goods to sell (which by the way isn't offered in the other section of the town). This is our target for the day.
We went into the market and almost immediately we had a swarm of boys trying to sell us plastic shopping bags. Then, after we were able to find our way to the actual produce, things got really interesting. When we gave an indication that we were interested in purchasing some tangerines, we had several people trying to sell us the fruit from one person's stand -- the majority of them are 'middle men' who try to get things for us, but in the process jack up the prices. Then, these 'middle men' swarmed around us with various other produce, and once they discovered other things that was on our shopping list, they ran to get them for us. Whew, what an experience!!!
However, this isn't the thing that stands out the most in my mind. When we returned to our vehicle which was parked safely in the other shopping district, we were again surrounded - by about four women. These women were old, and some of them visibly disabled who were begging for some shillings (money) off us. This isn't something I was prepared for. We didn't know how to respond so we tried to get in as quickly as possible closing the door behind us. I'm struggling to get them out of my mind. Our team coach said, after we all were safely in the vehicle, that it's up to us on how to respond to the homeless.
As I've been thinking about this, I came across Proverbs 21:13 - He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be answered. The homeless in America have a much different situation than those in E. Africa. Those in America can find shelters and other charitable organizations who will provide them with a bed, food, hygiene items, etc. But what about these four old, crippled women? What is their fate? Will anyone give them something to eat? Will anyone have compassion on them if I don't? Who are they anyway? Are they widows who have been left to fend for themselves? Are these women who had a husband, and raised a family only to have her husband and family to die from say AIDS, or other diseases? Who will help those that are physically starving in Africa? And who will help those that are spiritually starving without the Bread of Life?
We went into the market and almost immediately we had a swarm of boys trying to sell us plastic shopping bags. Then, after we were able to find our way to the actual produce, things got really interesting. When we gave an indication that we were interested in purchasing some tangerines, we had several people trying to sell us the fruit from one person's stand -- the majority of them are 'middle men' who try to get things for us, but in the process jack up the prices. Then, these 'middle men' swarmed around us with various other produce, and once they discovered other things that was on our shopping list, they ran to get them for us. Whew, what an experience!!!
However, this isn't the thing that stands out the most in my mind. When we returned to our vehicle which was parked safely in the other shopping district, we were again surrounded - by about four women. These women were old, and some of them visibly disabled who were begging for some shillings (money) off us. This isn't something I was prepared for. We didn't know how to respond so we tried to get in as quickly as possible closing the door behind us. I'm struggling to get them out of my mind. Our team coach said, after we all were safely in the vehicle, that it's up to us on how to respond to the homeless.
As I've been thinking about this, I came across Proverbs 21:13 - He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be answered. The homeless in America have a much different situation than those in E. Africa. Those in America can find shelters and other charitable organizations who will provide them with a bed, food, hygiene items, etc. But what about these four old, crippled women? What is their fate? Will anyone give them something to eat? Will anyone have compassion on them if I don't? Who are they anyway? Are they widows who have been left to fend for themselves? Are these women who had a husband, and raised a family only to have her husband and family to die from say AIDS, or other diseases? Who will help those that are physically starving in Africa? And who will help those that are spiritually starving without the Bread of Life?
A Prayer for the People of the City
This weekend will be some of the most significant days which we have participated in yet. On Friday night we will be showing "The Jesus Film" in this area. Then on Saturday night in the same area we are going to show many of these same people "The Passion of the Christ." And then on Sunday, the 5 of us as a group will teach Sunday School, and I will preach through a translator in the worship service.
Please pray that:
God bless,
Matt and Beth
Please pray that:
- there would be a large turn out for these life-changing events
- the hearts of the unreached who will attend these events will have their hearts open to the Truth of Jesus Christ
- our team would remain healthy (our host family has been battling with a cold - the kids have had it, now the adults are fighting with it)
- Praise God that the stomach pain/upset that I had throughout the night on Tuesday has gone away. Thank you for your prayers.
- the church which we will be working with would be blessed as they follow up with those who will come this weekend
God bless,
Matt and Beth
Adventuresome walks
We went for a walk one Sunday afternoon to attempt to learn more Swahili - mainly the various greetings. It was a fun walk. The first person we met quickly pulled us aside and told us that we're doing it wrong - we're supposed to say 'hamjambo' because there are two of them. She continued to help us a little until a friend came along and started talking with her, and another man came along to see what was going on and started to help us as well. He walked with us for a while towards town, and started to ask if he could be our teacher (basically he was looking for a job). He eventually left us - probably figuring out that we didn't want to pay a teacher, and we continued into town.
Recently, we've moved in with a new host family because our previous one had a housing situation that forced them to move out. We've been invited to join them on a morning walk. Well, on the way we meet many people and practice what Swahili we know - mainly greeting others. We also meet several school children on their way to school each morning. They would play a game on the way kicking some fruit they picked from a tree (probably a green tangerine, passion fruit or something of the like) in front of them. Matt's picked-up on this and will in turn kick it back to them. Needless to say they have really enjoyed their walk to school in the mornings. I suspect they'll be quite disappointed next week when we'll be living in a village.
Recently, we've moved in with a new host family because our previous one had a housing situation that forced them to move out. We've been invited to join them on a morning walk. Well, on the way we meet many people and practice what Swahili we know - mainly greeting others. We also meet several school children on their way to school each morning. They would play a game on the way kicking some fruit they picked from a tree (probably a green tangerine, passion fruit or something of the like) in front of them. Matt's picked-up on this and will in turn kick it back to them. Needless to say they have really enjoyed their walk to school in the mornings. I suspect they'll be quite disappointed next week when we'll be living in a village.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Language Conference - Week 1
This week we had the blessing of working with a number of individuals from a language that, while it does have two books of the Bible - Mark and John, more than likely they will need some revision. The missionary who has been leading the workshop explained to us that this language group has sounds that are not in the trade language (Swahili) which will need to be determined and recorded. Then the books will need to be revised to match the completed alphabet. Beyond this, the workshop will be used to create a dictionary (from Swahili to their language) and to record some Bible stories.
We've had an interesting time with these individuals. They come from a mixed background - of faiths, and education. Some can speak English fairly well while others cannot speak any English. For a large portion of the day, we've been sitting in the back of the conference room entering the word lists they give us into the computer, but during breaks and lunch time we are able to have more interaction with them.
They are so patient with us. They've given us some words and phrases of their language and explained what they mean in English which we'll try to read through to understand their meaning, and then attempt to speak. On the one hand it can be a humbling experience having everyone laughing at us because we can't speak any of their language, but on the other hand it is moving to see how also they respond to us as we continually work on learning from them. We can see their eyes light up and their faces glow because they have never before heard a white person speak their language. And even though the 2 weeks which we have with this people group will not be enough time to learn their language to the point of verbally communicating the Gospel message to them I am positive they are seeing it demonstrated before them.
What would it be like to never have any literature published in your language? Can you imagine never being able to read a magazine or good book? Or what would it be like to be proud of who you are and where you have came from yet have others laugh at or even despise you because of your heart language?
If a person really thinks about it they will realize that language is at the very core of a person's being: it is how we think, it is how we respond to others, it is how we get things done, it is one of the ways we feel and show love, it is a God given gift.
Or could you imagine what it would be like if no one ever took the time to care enough for you to help you meet Jesus? Can you imagine the hopelessness that you would experience when going through rough situations? What would it be like to realize that life is meaningless, and only if you do enough good works maybe things will improve but you can never be certain?
By in large, this has been a reality for the 230,000 people which speak the language we are currently working with. Even though currently the majority of the people we are working are of another major world religion, we can tell that they see hope in the work that we are doing with them. For they are eager to work with us. We were not able to complete all of the work which we were striving for this week but it did not matter to them because they were willing to work on it on their own time. The work must get done was their response--we must know the Truth.
Please pray for this people group here in East Africa. Pray that God would continue to open their hearts to the Good News. Pray that God would rise up all of the workers necessary to complete this work from the translators, church planters, evangelists, support staff, etc. needed to see these 230,000 people saved.
We've had an interesting time with these individuals. They come from a mixed background - of faiths, and education. Some can speak English fairly well while others cannot speak any English. For a large portion of the day, we've been sitting in the back of the conference room entering the word lists they give us into the computer, but during breaks and lunch time we are able to have more interaction with them.
They are so patient with us. They've given us some words and phrases of their language and explained what they mean in English which we'll try to read through to understand their meaning, and then attempt to speak. On the one hand it can be a humbling experience having everyone laughing at us because we can't speak any of their language, but on the other hand it is moving to see how also they respond to us as we continually work on learning from them. We can see their eyes light up and their faces glow because they have never before heard a white person speak their language. And even though the 2 weeks which we have with this people group will not be enough time to learn their language to the point of verbally communicating the Gospel message to them I am positive they are seeing it demonstrated before them.
What would it be like to never have any literature published in your language? Can you imagine never being able to read a magazine or good book? Or what would it be like to be proud of who you are and where you have came from yet have others laugh at or even despise you because of your heart language?
If a person really thinks about it they will realize that language is at the very core of a person's being: it is how we think, it is how we respond to others, it is how we get things done, it is one of the ways we feel and show love, it is a God given gift.
Or could you imagine what it would be like if no one ever took the time to care enough for you to help you meet Jesus? Can you imagine the hopelessness that you would experience when going through rough situations? What would it be like to realize that life is meaningless, and only if you do enough good works maybe things will improve but you can never be certain?
By in large, this has been a reality for the 230,000 people which speak the language we are currently working with. Even though currently the majority of the people we are working are of another major world religion, we can tell that they see hope in the work that we are doing with them. For they are eager to work with us. We were not able to complete all of the work which we were striving for this week but it did not matter to them because they were willing to work on it on their own time. The work must get done was their response--we must know the Truth.
Please pray for this people group here in East Africa. Pray that God would continue to open their hearts to the Good News. Pray that God would rise up all of the workers necessary to complete this work from the translators, church planters, evangelists, support staff, etc. needed to see these 230,000 people saved.
Arrival and first week in E. Africa
We arrived safely on Tuesday June 14, and praise God we were able to get all of our luggage without them charging customs fees/taxes, etc. Then began the long journey to the branch location. Since we were beat from traveling for a couple of days and jet-lag we all slept for parts of the ride. Upon our arrival we were introduced to the majority of the missionaries staying here, distributed our luggage, met our host families and went home them after munching on a baked potato bar (it was delicious!). The rest of the week was more relaxed, we were given further orientation to the area (food safety, health, etc.) and some more serious language training.
Over the weekend, we got to get a brief glimpse of the market, played ultimate frisbee with the rest of the branch members and other Americans that are staying in the area. Sunday was delightful, we were blessed to go to a Swahili speaking church. It was definitely an interesting worship service, and it is amazing how God works things out - the man who preached that day shared about his calling to work as a missionary in another location. God is so amazing how He intertwines our lives together with fellow believers, prayer warriors, and persons of peace (those who the Holy Spirit has been working on, preparing them to hear the Gospel).
Throughout the week, we got to meet with different individuals of the branch and chat with them over lunch, training, etc. One thing that really sticks out in our mind is comment that someone had made to one of the missionaries we are working with when she was in Bible college years ago, they declared that they "could never to the mission field because then [they] couldn't sleep knowing of all the people who were dying and going to hell."
Did you catch that statement? Unless we do something about it countless millions will never know the hope that we have in Christ Jesus. Friends if this does not stir our hearts then maybe we need to repent because we are not where we need to be in our walk of faith.
Jesus said in John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
"O LORD give us a heart for the lost. Do not allow us to have any rest until we are burdened for the lost to the point of action. We pray that You will stamp eternity on our hearts that we may always do the things which will matter on that Day when You return."
Over the weekend, we got to get a brief glimpse of the market, played ultimate frisbee with the rest of the branch members and other Americans that are staying in the area. Sunday was delightful, we were blessed to go to a Swahili speaking church. It was definitely an interesting worship service, and it is amazing how God works things out - the man who preached that day shared about his calling to work as a missionary in another location. God is so amazing how He intertwines our lives together with fellow believers, prayer warriors, and persons of peace (those who the Holy Spirit has been working on, preparing them to hear the Gospel).
Throughout the week, we got to meet with different individuals of the branch and chat with them over lunch, training, etc. One thing that really sticks out in our mind is comment that someone had made to one of the missionaries we are working with when she was in Bible college years ago, they declared that they "could never to the mission field because then [they] couldn't sleep knowing of all the people who were dying and going to hell."
Did you catch that statement? Unless we do something about it countless millions will never know the hope that we have in Christ Jesus. Friends if this does not stir our hearts then maybe we need to repent because we are not where we need to be in our walk of faith.
Jesus said in John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
"O LORD give us a heart for the lost. Do not allow us to have any rest until we are burdened for the lost to the point of action. We pray that You will stamp eternity on our hearts that we may always do the things which will matter on that Day when You return."
Attributes of God
We mentioned in a previous post that during our Pre-Field Orientation (PFO) training we did devotions as a group to begin each day. One morning we listed off any attribute of God that came to mind alphabetically. Below you will find a number of those responses:
A - Awesomeness
B - Beauty
C - Close, creation, Christ compassion, come to us
D - Diligence, depth, daring, deliverance
E - Everlasting, excellence, ever-presence
F - Faithfulness, friendship, forgiveness, freedom, Father
G - Grace, generosity, giving Spirit
H - Hope, help, holiness
I - Ingenuity, integrity, insight, intimate
J - Justice, joy, jealousy, Jesus
K - Kind, kingship, keen awareness
L - Loyalty, laughter, love, languages, lion
M - Magnificent, mighty, merciful, most High
N - Near, new, noble, North Star
O - Optimistic, open, overall, only
P - Patient, perfect, pure, persistent
Q - Quiet, quick
R - Redeemer, risen, righteous, revealer, reign
S - Savior, sustainer, Shepherd, sympathetic, strength
T - Triumphant, thoughtful, trustworthy, tower of refuge, truth, timeless, timely
U - Unchanging, unwavering, uniter, unconditional love, united
V - Victorious, valliant, vigorous
W - Warrior, worthy, wild, watchful, wise
X- Xenagogue (a guide)
Y - Yearn, youthful, yield, yoke-is-light
Z - Zealous
A - Awesomeness
B - Beauty
C - Close, creation, Christ compassion, come to us
D - Diligence, depth, daring, deliverance
E - Everlasting, excellence, ever-presence
F - Faithfulness, friendship, forgiveness, freedom, Father
G - Grace, generosity, giving Spirit
H - Hope, help, holiness
I - Ingenuity, integrity, insight, intimate
J - Justice, joy, jealousy, Jesus
K - Kind, kingship, keen awareness
L - Loyalty, laughter, love, languages, lion
M - Magnificent, mighty, merciful, most High
N - Near, new, noble, North Star
O - Optimistic, open, overall, only
P - Patient, perfect, pure, persistent
Q - Quiet, quick
R - Redeemer, risen, righteous, revealer, reign
S - Savior, sustainer, Shepherd, sympathetic, strength
T - Triumphant, thoughtful, trustworthy, tower of refuge, truth, timeless, timely
U - Unchanging, unwavering, uniter, unconditional love, united
V - Victorious, valliant, vigorous
W - Warrior, worthy, wild, watchful, wise
X- Xenagogue (a guide)
Y - Yearn, youthful, yield, yoke-is-light
Z - Zealous
Friday, June 24, 2011
The Life of a Missionary
Good morning everyone,
Here is a glimpse into the day of a missionary... :-) Yesterday, Friday morning started out as a typical morning, but shortly before arriving at the compound where the office is located, the electricity went out. While we're on power rationing (which is unusual for this time of year since it's their 'winter' and the air conditioners, etc aren't in use) (our days for power rationing are Saturday and Monday) today wasn't our day for the outage, plus it usually goes off like clockwork - at 8:30 AM. Well, anyways, praise God for a back-up generator at the compound so the work could go on. The only problem is that the house where we're staying at doesn't have a generator so they went the whole day without electricity. This is fine, but since it was unexpected, we weren't prepared for it - it was the intern's laundry day. So, the laundry didn't get done which is sorely needed.
Then, after the language workshop was over we returned home to an exciting evening. Another family had planned to have a date night, so their kids were spending the night at our place. So, we got to play with them while Emily fixed dinner -- praise God she has a gas range. We waited for a little while, expecting the power to come back on by 6:30, the usual time, but it didn't come on. So, we ate dinner in candle light - the kids at one table and the adults (Emily and Chris-who have been our host family, and us interns - Kailyn, Matt and I) at another. The topic at the adult's table is Chris and Emily's housing situation -- unless they're willing to pay almost double what they've been paying in rent they have to move - by Tuesday! After dinner, we sat down for a movie - praise God we were able to find a laptop that was charged. We got about 95% of the way through the movie before the laptop lost power. Then it was time for the kids to go to bed... which was another exciting adventure.
The girl got to sleep with Kailyn, but the three boys got to sleep in the living room - we pushed the two chairs together for one of the boys, took the cushions off a couch which was on the porch for the second and the third got to sleep on the couch. Then when we went to stretch the mosquito nets over the kids, we discovered that somehow the nets had collected a bug or two - gigantic cockroaches and a couple small spiders. It jumped on Emily, she just shook it off which sent it my way, so I followed her lead and shook it off. Matt was trying to get me to kill it, but not with the flashlight! But I wasn't going to step on it with my bare feet!!! So he came over and by that time we figured we lost it under the cushions (one of the beds). But alas, it was on Matt's leg (or is this a second one?). He tried killing it, but it was alluding the death pinchers of Matt and instead flew to the shelf above the main doorway - which went back 6 feet. But, it didn't stay there. Soon it was sitting on the edge of the shelf watching what was going on with its bird's eye perch. Well, by that time Matt had grabbed the bug-zapper -- a tennis racket that is geared with an electrical charge that will zap any bug near it, and went after it. With Chris's help the boys have a successful hunt -- the bug got zapped and what a zapping it was! Now we just had to calm everyone down, assure them that a herd of cockroaches wasn't waiting to get them nor would Matt with his amazing bug-zapper. We were able to get everyone settled down for a good night's sleep and went to our own beds. And while we awoke this morning with power, there may be a chance that in an hour from now we'll loose it for the day. Guess the laundry might not get done until Monday, but that's one day in the life of a missionary.
:-)
Praise God this is not the story everyday!
I've been studying the fruits of the Spirit and decided to do a word study on 'joy.' The first passage I looked up was Deut. 28:47-48 which follows the description of curses that God would pour out on the people if they didn't serve God with joy and a glad heart for the abundance of all things. Praise God that we do have many things. We were able to continue to serve Him even when the electricity is out. In fact, electricity isn't necessarily needed to do ministry. Praise God that we do have clothes to wear. Praise God for the wonderful prayer partners that God has surrounded us with.
Here is a glimpse into the day of a missionary... :-) Yesterday, Friday morning started out as a typical morning, but shortly before arriving at the compound where the office is located, the electricity went out. While we're on power rationing (which is unusual for this time of year since it's their 'winter' and the air conditioners, etc aren't in use) (our days for power rationing are Saturday and Monday) today wasn't our day for the outage, plus it usually goes off like clockwork - at 8:30 AM. Well, anyways, praise God for a back-up generator at the compound so the work could go on. The only problem is that the house where we're staying at doesn't have a generator so they went the whole day without electricity. This is fine, but since it was unexpected, we weren't prepared for it - it was the intern's laundry day. So, the laundry didn't get done which is sorely needed.
Then, after the language workshop was over we returned home to an exciting evening. Another family had planned to have a date night, so their kids were spending the night at our place. So, we got to play with them while Emily fixed dinner -- praise God she has a gas range. We waited for a little while, expecting the power to come back on by 6:30, the usual time, but it didn't come on. So, we ate dinner in candle light - the kids at one table and the adults (Emily and Chris-who have been our host family, and us interns - Kailyn, Matt and I) at another. The topic at the adult's table is Chris and Emily's housing situation -- unless they're willing to pay almost double what they've been paying in rent they have to move - by Tuesday! After dinner, we sat down for a movie - praise God we were able to find a laptop that was charged. We got about 95% of the way through the movie before the laptop lost power. Then it was time for the kids to go to bed... which was another exciting adventure.
The girl got to sleep with Kailyn, but the three boys got to sleep in the living room - we pushed the two chairs together for one of the boys, took the cushions off a couch which was on the porch for the second and the third got to sleep on the couch. Then when we went to stretch the mosquito nets over the kids, we discovered that somehow the nets had collected a bug or two - gigantic cockroaches and a couple small spiders. It jumped on Emily, she just shook it off which sent it my way, so I followed her lead and shook it off. Matt was trying to get me to kill it, but not with the flashlight! But I wasn't going to step on it with my bare feet!!! So he came over and by that time we figured we lost it under the cushions (one of the beds). But alas, it was on Matt's leg (or is this a second one?). He tried killing it, but it was alluding the death pinchers of Matt and instead flew to the shelf above the main doorway - which went back 6 feet. But, it didn't stay there. Soon it was sitting on the edge of the shelf watching what was going on with its bird's eye perch. Well, by that time Matt had grabbed the bug-zapper -- a tennis racket that is geared with an electrical charge that will zap any bug near it, and went after it. With Chris's help the boys have a successful hunt -- the bug got zapped and what a zapping it was! Now we just had to calm everyone down, assure them that a herd of cockroaches wasn't waiting to get them nor would Matt with his amazing bug-zapper. We were able to get everyone settled down for a good night's sleep and went to our own beds. And while we awoke this morning with power, there may be a chance that in an hour from now we'll loose it for the day. Guess the laundry might not get done until Monday, but that's one day in the life of a missionary.
:-)
Praise God this is not the story everyday!
I've been studying the fruits of the Spirit and decided to do a word study on 'joy.' The first passage I looked up was Deut. 28:47-48 which follows the description of curses that God would pour out on the people if they didn't serve God with joy and a glad heart for the abundance of all things. Praise God that we do have many things. We were able to continue to serve Him even when the electricity is out. In fact, electricity isn't necessarily needed to do ministry. Praise God that we do have clothes to wear. Praise God for the wonderful prayer partners that God has surrounded us with.
Monday, June 20, 2011
A Reflection of 9 Hours in London
One week ago today, we got the chance to spend 9 hours in a city that many people only dream of going to--London, England. Our 9 hours were fantastic. We were able to see some of the premier sites that London is famous for, Buckingham Palace right at the time of the changing of the guard, Big Ben, and Westminster Chapel. We saw the places where numerous films have been shot; the sites and sounds were so vivid in these picturesque locations that we could easily relive many of those movies which we have seen throughout the years.
Many of these historical centerpieces directed my thoughts to a nation from which countless Christians have called home. People who were willing to give up everything so that others could know the truth of Jesus Christ. Men and women who stood for Christ no matter the cost. People who died for their faith, and others who had to do something even more difficult--they had to LIVE for their faith; they had to love the unloveable, face rejection from friends and family members just because they were a Christian; and they had to persist when they felt like giving up.
Jesus said in Revelation 3:5, "He who overcomes shall thus be clothed in white garments (a sign of purity instead of the filthy garments which our sins deserve); and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father, and His angels.
Those were the thoughts which ran through my mind for the majority of the time that we were in London. But then while I was buying a juice in a store at the London airport all those thoughts instantly melted away as I took one look at the British currency which I was using to pay for my juice. On the one side was the picture of the Queen of England (as one would expect) but on the other side was the picture of Charles Darwin!
In Revelation 2:5 Jesus says, "Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lamp-stand (the church) out of its place--unless you repent." This is what has happened to a large extent in not just England but much of Europe; and now unfortunately, it is even in the USA.
The only question that remands for us regarding this reflection of 9 hours in London is our response, because unless the church in the USA heeds this warning the church here for the most part will be just like the majority of the church in London--spiritually DEAD, so much so that our currency will reflect it as well.
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Revelation 3:6)
"O Lord, may it never be! Open our eyes to see the need of our generation, and grant us the strength to endure when so many are giving up to the ways of this world because it is 'IN [You], GOD [that] WE TRUST.'"
Many of these historical centerpieces directed my thoughts to a nation from which countless Christians have called home. People who were willing to give up everything so that others could know the truth of Jesus Christ. Men and women who stood for Christ no matter the cost. People who died for their faith, and others who had to do something even more difficult--they had to LIVE for their faith; they had to love the unloveable, face rejection from friends and family members just because they were a Christian; and they had to persist when they felt like giving up.
Jesus said in Revelation 3:5, "He who overcomes shall thus be clothed in white garments (a sign of purity instead of the filthy garments which our sins deserve); and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father, and His angels.
Those were the thoughts which ran through my mind for the majority of the time that we were in London. But then while I was buying a juice in a store at the London airport all those thoughts instantly melted away as I took one look at the British currency which I was using to pay for my juice. On the one side was the picture of the Queen of England (as one would expect) but on the other side was the picture of Charles Darwin!
In Revelation 2:5 Jesus says, "Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lamp-stand (the church) out of its place--unless you repent." This is what has happened to a large extent in not just England but much of Europe; and now unfortunately, it is even in the USA.
The only question that remands for us regarding this reflection of 9 hours in London is our response, because unless the church in the USA heeds this warning the church here for the most part will be just like the majority of the church in London--spiritually DEAD, so much so that our currency will reflect it as well.
"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Revelation 3:6)
"O Lord, may it never be! Open our eyes to see the need of our generation, and grant us the strength to endure when so many are giving up to the ways of this world because it is 'IN [You], GOD [that] WE TRUST.'"
Saturday, June 11, 2011
The real adventure is about to begin
The adventure has only just begun. We've been blessed with two weeks of training - the first week with about 18 other interns preparing for their internship to various locations. We were able to do some team building, culture and language learning... along with some fun. :-) Not to mention the preparation time being in the Texas heat and investigating all of the new critters... from spiders, fire ants, scorpions and the like.
During the first week, we had some amazing devotional times together. One morning we discussed what the Kingdom of God is, and how we might see it expand throughout the summer. Another morning we explored John 15 and shared what stood out to each of us, one of the things that we found is that in verse 16, Jesus told His disciples that He chose them and commissioned them to go and bear fruit. We are to do likewise. Another morning, we went through the alphabet sharing words that described God, or words that we could use to praise Him with. We were able to get some of those characteristics on paper which we'll have to share with you at a later date.
This last week we've had a wonderful, though jam-packed time with more general training with individuals interested in PBT - we've been learning about the various fields PBT is working in, and others that are opening up. We've discussed endeavors that the missionaries have experienced - whether it be transitions, culture stress, or the blessings of spiritual growth. There have been times to chat with missionaries who are preparing to return to the field and others who have recently returned for their furlough time. God is so good.
We'll be leaving tomorrow for the bigger adventure in Africa. We are in the midst of cleaning the mobile home we've been living in for the past two weeks, and finalizing packing. Praise God for such a wonderful place to stay.
Prayer list:
Praise God:
For the ability that we've had to learn and grow in preparation for the internship.
For the wonderful time in Dallas to meet and chat with interns and missionaries from various fields.
For the opportunity to serve Him and further explore His calling on our lives.
Prayer requests:
Please pray that our team is able to experience unity throughout the trip, and that we can gel with the team that is already on the field.
Please pray that we might be able to learn the trade language quickly and be able to communicate the Gospel message clearly to the people of Africa through our actions and words.
Please pray that we would find open doors in the hearts of the people we will be ministering to.
Thank you for your partnership with us in praying for, encouraging, and supporting us as we seek to follow God's will and make disciple-makers throughout the world. Thank you also for the opportunity that we have to pray for you.
Blessings,
Matt and Beth
During the first week, we had some amazing devotional times together. One morning we discussed what the Kingdom of God is, and how we might see it expand throughout the summer. Another morning we explored John 15 and shared what stood out to each of us, one of the things that we found is that in verse 16, Jesus told His disciples that He chose them and commissioned them to go and bear fruit. We are to do likewise. Another morning, we went through the alphabet sharing words that described God, or words that we could use to praise Him with. We were able to get some of those characteristics on paper which we'll have to share with you at a later date.
This last week we've had a wonderful, though jam-packed time with more general training with individuals interested in PBT - we've been learning about the various fields PBT is working in, and others that are opening up. We've discussed endeavors that the missionaries have experienced - whether it be transitions, culture stress, or the blessings of spiritual growth. There have been times to chat with missionaries who are preparing to return to the field and others who have recently returned for their furlough time. God is so good.
We'll be leaving tomorrow for the bigger adventure in Africa. We are in the midst of cleaning the mobile home we've been living in for the past two weeks, and finalizing packing. Praise God for such a wonderful place to stay.
Prayer list:
Praise God:
For the ability that we've had to learn and grow in preparation for the internship.
For the wonderful time in Dallas to meet and chat with interns and missionaries from various fields.
For the opportunity to serve Him and further explore His calling on our lives.
Prayer requests:
Please pray that our team is able to experience unity throughout the trip, and that we can gel with the team that is already on the field.
Please pray that we might be able to learn the trade language quickly and be able to communicate the Gospel message clearly to the people of Africa through our actions and words.
Please pray that we would find open doors in the hearts of the people we will be ministering to.
Thank you for your partnership with us in praying for, encouraging, and supporting us as we seek to follow God's will and make disciple-makers throughout the world. Thank you also for the opportunity that we have to pray for you.
Blessings,
Matt and Beth
Saturday, May 28, 2011
In Texas!
Yesterday we have officially begun our internship, driving the 10 hours down to Dallas. Praise God, the drive went well, we ran into a little rain along the way, but nothing major. Otherwise, our drive took us directly through Joplin, MO where the tornado ripped through. Although we stayed on the expressway, we were able to see some of the damage that was done. There were several trees that were down, or their branches were stripped of them. Houses were totally destroyed or significantly damaged and the remains of the devastation was widespread. What a reminder of the power of God, and also of how blessed we are - there were several crews out cleaning up and helping everyone get back on their feet again. Please continue to keep the people of Joplin in your prayers.
We were the first interns to arrive yesterday. When we went to sign-in at the guest house, we were informed that since there are so many coming in for the internship and for the Pioneer Mission Institute (it sounds like around 95 people will be there) we would be placed in a mobile home on campus instead. Just to explain, the Pioneer Mission Institute (PMI) is a large conference for Pioneer Bible Translators to gather together which explains some of the basics of Bible translation for those interested, but also serves as an opportunity for the missionaries who are on furlough to meet again before returning to the field.
The International Linguistic Center, houses Wycliffe, the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL), the Graduate Institute of Linguistics and Pioneer Bible Translators, so needless to say, it is a good sized campus - with a RV area, mobile home park, apartments for college students, some married housing, a guest house on top of all the administrative buildings for everyone.
It is a very awesome and humbling experience to think about the millions of lives that have, are and will be touched because of what takes place at this location. We can't help but think about the multitudes of people who never had God's Word in their language and through the work of this location in Bible translation they're now able to learn of the hope that is in the Word they hold in their hands and allow it to direct their lives.
Thank you for your partnership in enabling more lives to have the hope which is found only in Jesus Christ. We will continue to keep you in our thoughts and prayers throughout this summer journey. We are blessed to know you.
Until they all know,
Matt and Beth
Thursday, May 19, 2011
New Blog
Greetings!
We pray that all is well for you. We've set this blog up to post updates on our experiences, travel, prayer requests, praises, etc. Additionally, we look forward to hearing from each of you. Please feel free to comment to posts, and add your own letting us know how things are going for you, prayer requests, etc.
Until they all know,
Matt and Beth Boughan
We pray that all is well for you. We've set this blog up to post updates on our experiences, travel, prayer requests, praises, etc. Additionally, we look forward to hearing from each of you. Please feel free to comment to posts, and add your own letting us know how things are going for you, prayer requests, etc.
Until they all know,
Matt and Beth Boughan
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