February Update

Wow! It is February already. The rainy season is in full swing… lots of rain. The mapopwe (corn) is growing well. Also there are lots of mosquitoes. As I have found out because I have recently gotten sick with malaria. But I am on medication now and starting to feel better. Please pray for a speedy recovery.
Thank you for your continued support. It is greatly appreciated. The projects at the hospital are going pretty well. The new water system is working well; and the out patient department building is coming along. We are still waiting for the power company to come and finish their work. Please keep praying about that.
There will be a lot of changes happening with me over the next few months. Selinda and I will be leaving for North America in the middle of April to prepare for our wedding (to be held on May 28th).
I also have recently been accepted as a long-term missionary with Global Partners. Because of our new status, our budget will increase, so we will take the coming year to visit churches, reporting back to those on our team, and visiting new ones. We will also spend time getting to know each other's families and adjusting to married life before returning to the field. We will attend Global Partner's missionary training institute (MTI) in June 2012 and our goal is to be funded in time to head back to the field as soon as MTI is finished.
So Selinda and I will be visiting churches from the beginning of August 2011 until the end of May 2012. If you would like to have us come share about the work in Zambia , we would be happy to! Just let me know

Winter Months

The winter months back in Wisconsin... December, January, and February are the rainy months in Zambia. It is when everyone plows and plants. They plant mapopwe (corn), indongwe (peanuts), pumpkins, and sweet potatoes. It does not rain everyday but usually every other, and it rains hard. It will storm for a couple of hours and there will be six inches of water everywhere. That is extreme. Usually the rain is not that extreme. Nobody here complains about the rain; they know it brings life. During the dry season everything dies or is dormant. So it is very brown and dusty. When the rains start the grass, trees, bushes wake up and turn a beautiful green. It does not take too long maybe 1 or 2 rains and everything is green. The grass around grows very tall, and fast... to about 10 feet or so. The contrast is remarkable.
During the dry season, out in bush ones sees all the run off riverbeds that are completely dry, but during the rainy season those fill with water... gouging and reshaping the landscape. A few weeks ago we walked to Church in the rain. It’s three miles. When we crossed one such river it was just a trickle, but upon returning a few hours later we found the river raging. It was knee-deep and running fast. I had to stand in the middle of the river against the current helping the others across. People cross such rivers daily to get to work or home or wherever else they may be going. Within a few hours, after the rain stops, the river is just a trickle again.
Also, rainy season brings mosquitoes and malaria. The hospital is filled with people this time of year who have it. There are many kids that die because of it. I also got it. It is not fun at all. I guess what I can relate it to is a really bad flu. One's body hurts bad, no energy, a nasty headache, and diarrhea. Oh yea, and a fever. If left untreated it will kill. So, I am on medicine and resting. Hopefully, I will kick it soon.

The land during the dry season-





Wet Season -

Wedding

I am finally getting around to updating my blog. Thanks for your patience.

I had a neat opportunity last month. I got to attend a wedding of one of our Church members. It was about 45 kilometers from where I stay-way out in the bush. Selinda and I jumped into the back of the Lorrie truck with about 75 other people. We were scrunched together very tightly. It took us about two hours to get to the marriage house because of the road and also no brakes on the truck.
This wedding was not held in a church because the church building that was there was too small for all the people. It was held at the bride’s house. After arriving, I was ushered to sit with the bapati (the very important people). These were the pastors that were part of the service. We sat, chatted, and drank cibontu, waiting for the ceremony to start. The ceremony was to start about 9 hours, but in usual African fashion did not start until 13 hours. Before the service started, the place was a bustle of activity. The guests were constantly streaming in; some of the ladies were cooking nsima, chicken, vegetables, and goat for the wedding reception. The participants in the wedding were dressing and getting ready to dance. The wedding itself took place under a tent in the middle of the yard. The bapati and I sat in front while under the tent was left empty for dancing. The guests/spectators were seated all around the edge of the tent. The music was extremely loud and there was lots of dancing.
Everyone was so excited and happy to be part of this monumental occasion. The whole ceremony and dancing took four hours.
Going to this event, I learned the power of presence. The family was just so happy that we came. I did not do anything, but just being there meant so much to them. I was very blessed to be part of this-spending time with the people and being part of this special time in their lives.

December/January Update

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope that your Christmas and New Year's celebrations were Christ filled and spent with family and friends. Christmas for us here in Zambia was pretty quiet and restful. The four of us missionaries in Zimba had a meal together and took a much needed nap. I cooked up a rack of lamb and it turned out very tasty.
The way the Zambians celebrate Christmas is somewhat different than how it is celebrated in the US . For them it all revolves around the Church. In each Church, people give a few Kwacha so some food can be bought. They have a meal together on Christmas Day. There is a church service that is held on Christmas Day itself. It usually lasts all day or most of it anyway. They sing and dance, do some skits and have a message. After all these are finished, they have the meal. The meal consists of nsima, chicken, and vegetables. By the time they are done eating, it is getting dark so everyone heads for home. They usually do not exchange gifts with one another.
There is an extreme split here. There are those who go to Church on Christmas Day, and those who go to the bar. That is how the day is spent. Very few people stay home for Christmas. So the town is loud with music and the people at the bars.
How did you celebrate Christmas?
The New Year's celebration was very similar. Those who go to Church usually go on New Year's Eve, in the evening, and spend the night. They have an overnight prayer meeting. The night is filled with prayers of thanksgiving for allowing them to see the New Year, and prayers for the upcoming year. Other people go to the bar. The town is loud with people yelling and firecrackers going off all night.
The four of us just visited with each other and had a New Year's BBQ. It was a good time, and again we got some much needed rest. I think we were all in bed by 9:00 pm.
How did you welcome in the New Year?
Thank you for your continued support. The prayer and the financial support is very much appreciated

Let it Rain!

One problem at the hospital, I have been trying solve, has been the leaking roofs on the out patient department building and on the laundry building. In the rainy season the roofs leak terribly. The ceilings inside the buildings get soaked and fall down. Not a good situation. Medical supplies are kept in one of these buildings. When it rains these get very wet. Not a good situation either. When my family was here visiting, I showed the problem to my dad to see if he had any ideas for fixing this. After some discussion, my dad, my two maintenance coworkers and I came up with a plan. The fix was, adding a short piece of tin under the ridge cap to extend the tin sheeting. We also bent the upper end of the tin so that it turned up and would act as a barrier under the ridge cap to prevent the rainwater from pouring in. Up until now, the wind has blown the rainwater under the ridge cap and into the building. My coworker and I finally finished both buildings just last week. There has been one big rain, so far, to test the fix. After the rain was over I stuck my head up into the attic of the out patient building to see how much water was there. All was dry. I think the fix worked. That is great news. Now let the rains come.

November Update

Greetings from Zimba. Wow! Thanksgiving is here and Christmas is just around the corner. It is amazing how fast time flies. I hope this update finds you all well. Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas. Thanks you so much for your continued support. I do appreciate it very much.

November has been a month of projects started and answered prayers. There are several big projects in the works. These include putting up new water tanks at the hospital, the new out patient department building, and Zesco doing some electrical upgrades. I have been trying to get these moving the past several months; but nothing was happening. I would talk to the contractors; they would all say they would come and do the work but nothing would happen. I was growing very tired and a little frustrated by the responses I kept getting. Over these last months I have heard a lot of excuses and reasons why things could not begin.

We spend time in prayer each morning for the needs here and our concerns. So that is what we did. Instead of getting all worked up, some time ago we just committed these projects to prayer and let God take them. My efforts were going nowhere. Then in the beginning of November everything began to happen all at once. The guys putting the tanks up came and started; now the tower has been built. The guys who are building the out patient department building came and started laying bricks. Even Zesco, who I have been working with for about a year, has come and started digging the holes for the poles that are needed at the hospital.

There is still a lot of work to be done, but this month has shown significant progress. Thank you for praying as well.

I am just reminded of Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

Thanks again for your support.

October Update

Greetings from Zambia. I hope this update finds you all well. October was a big month for me. I have made history here in Zimba. Selinda, another missionary here, and I were the first Mukuwas (whites) to be in the line up of a Zambian wedding in Zimba. They were some friends of ours. The husband works at the hospital and the wife goes to our church. They have been wanting to get married for a long time, and finally it happened. We were asked if we would dance in the wedding because we were friends, so we agreed. I don’t know what ever possessed me but I said yes. There were 8 of us in the procession. We all had to learn the dance steps. We practiced here at the mission for a couple of hours three times a week. At the beginning, I could not follow what everyone else was doing. I felt very awkward and everyone would laugh. But I finally got the hang of it just in time for the wedding. Praise God! Who said Wesleyans can’t dance. I never thought I would be doing that as a missionary. I was the best man. Selinda was the maid of honor. So I walked in with the groom and she walked in with the bride. The wedding took about 4 hours to complete. It was very hot and I was in a dark suit with a jacket on all afternoon. It was long, hot, and uncomfortable, but I would not have traded it for the world. It was neat to be let into their lives and take part in this event. We also danced as the bride and groom exited the church. While doing that, there were so many people crowding the aisles we could barely do our moves. We managed and the people here in Zimba are still talking about the wedding. They were so happy.

Otherwise, October brought the heat. Many days of 100+F; so I sweat a lot. Also my parents came to visit. It was really great to see them and spend some time with them. I am also happy they could come and see what I am doing here, my new friends, and where I stay.

Thanks again for your continued support. I do appreciate it very much.



P.S. Speaking of weddings, I am also getting married. Selinda and I are planning to be married late next spring.