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September 29, 2008

exotic pets

A few months ago I was reading a book on tips to declutter your home. One tip I remember was to surround yourself with a few live things (plants and animals) rather than a bunch a stuff/ decor/ unused books etc. Today I've taken my first step toward that end. :-)

A couple young entrepreneurs came to the door this morning with birds for sale. Beautiful African love birds!! Yeah!! I couldn't resist! ($14 not too shabby a price for 2 tropical birds either!) Never think of me as alone in Africa...that is, as long as I can keep them alive. :-)

Answers to prayer are on their way

HOUSING: I'll be moving into temporary housing- a 1-room apartment with indoor plumbing, kitchen sink, and refrigerator in a few days. There's also a more permanent guest house becoming available in January (just when i'll need it). If it doesn't fall through- it's a perfect spot!

LANGUAGE STUDY: The Lord has provided just the person I've been praying for, as a language helper. Angel- a Tanzanian,about my age, married but no children yet and looking for a job- will be spending 4 mornings a week with me- talking. :-) We had our first "session" this morning. She's had some education and is comfortable around "wazungu" (white people). Comfortable enough to correct my sentence structure and pronunciation. I'm so excited! I have lots of plans! I'm going to have her help me learn the "bus" system here, and what is considered good prices in the market and appropriate greetings for different people. PTL! When I get a chance, I'll post a picture. :-)

September 24, 2008

Yes...I am alive...

Whew...it's been awhile. For those of you who check often, please forgive my delay in writing. I haven't had access to internet often since I left the states.

There's SO much to say! The first is... THANK YOU for praying!! God has shown Himself faithful in these last 3 weeks in many ways!

I don't have much time so here's the condensed version: Had a great trip, could not have gone better through customs, switching airlines and baggage, etc. Had a great BIMI missionary conference. So good to meet other missionaries and see Dr. Bragg (BIMI African Director) here in my new home. I'm staying with the Brouwers for now, moving to a small, one-room guest house next week for 3 months while I focus on language.

Schedule for now:
Sundays- visit the Baptist churches in the area, share a song or testimony, then go out to eat at one of the restaurants in the city.
Wednesdays- teach a Bible lesson (in English) at a private school, then soul winning and church service at Igoma (a city nearby).
Other weekdays- in the mornings- work with Brouwer's worker in the kitchen, learning how to prepare foods here and practice Swahili, also go out walking in the neighborhood- meeting ladies and practicing Swahili. Afternoons- 3 hrs of language study with Brouwers and Ray Weekly. I'm also doing some tutoring and piano lessons for a few missionary kids.
Saturdays- my day off/sabbath! :-)

Although a bit scary at first, I've enjoyed walking around the neighbor. Have met several ladies. It's fun to watch them laugh at my broken Swahili. I've also already had several requests for my phone # and several offers of marriage. I think I'll be greeting ladies only from now on! :-)

September 3, 2008

1

My last day at home! Thank you for your prayers! Our God is faithful!! and His strength is sufficient!

September 2, 2008

July-August prayer letter

Dear family and friends,

Deputation is over!!

Rejoice with me and give praise to the King of kings!! He opened doors for me to share in 88 churches, and He has brought me to 100% support level! He kept me safe through 13 states, and 37,000 miles.

Thank you to each pastor and church who has blessed me on this 1½ year adventure. Thank you for your encouraging words and prayers and hospitality. I’m overwhelmed by the countless new friends God has given me! Thank you especially to the 36 churches who have committed to supporting me monthly!

Thank you also to so many friends and family who have encouraged me to do what seemed to be impossible tasks. I am keenly aware that I would not be heading to the mission field if it wasn’t for the love and prayers of my parents and grandparents. Thank you for training me to serve our Lord and for letting me go. Also, I’m not sure I would have even attempted deputation as a single if it were not for the encouragement of so many friends... and thank you to the 17 friends and family members who are sending me to the field by your monthly gifts!

What happens now? After a month of rest and packing, I’m ready to move to Africa! I’ll arrive in Mwanza, Tanzania on Sept. 5th, and the BIMI East African conference starts a few days later. I’m excited for the chance to meet other Tanzanian missionaries and get a feel for the passion and vision of our team. After the conference final decisions will need to be made on where I’ll live and how I’ll pursue language study.

*Please pray for safe travel and that all my luggage arrives with me.
*Pray for God’s strength to leave my home and family and for clear direction as I begin making a new home in Africa.
*Pray that I’ll start building relationships right away with those in my new neighborhood who need to hear of the Savior.


All by His grace,
Lisa

2

My heart is heavy for a dear friend of mine. Would you add Kristine McLaughlin, BIMI missionary to Ivory Coast, to your prayer list? As a fellow single missionary and a friend from college, she has done much to mentor and encourage me all along this missionary journey. Kristine and I were planning to leave for the field at the same time. Instead I'm going, and she's recovering from a broken neck caused by a car accident. Added to that.. her dad is struggling through pancreatic cancer. Pray for Kristine.

September 1, 2008

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Here's a general itinerary of my 3 flights:

Denver to London, Wed eve to Thurs noon
London to Dar es Salaam, Thurs eve to Fri morning
Dar es Salaam to Mwanza, Fri morning to Fri noon
Total trip with layovers: 31 hours

Pray for protection, pray that all my luggage arrives safely, and pray for God-appointed opportunities to witness to my "seat-mates" on the planes.