Lisa Newland

Last Saturday I had 15 or so Tanzanian pastors and friends over for lunch and fellowship and to meet my parents.

I couldn't have done it without the help of friends, American and Tanzanian!!

We started Friday. My house worker, Jakrine, and I took my parents to the market. Their 2nd day here! I thought it would be a great induction into the culture and I wasn't disappointed! I happened to forget to warn my parents that we would be buying live chickens. :-) We bought 5 chickens for 6,000 Tanzanian shillings each (about $4.80) and another 200 shillings each (16 cents) to have them slaughtered and de-feathered.

Two missionary ladies, Tammy Brouwer and Joyce Jarvis, helped by cooking a big pot of rice Sat morning, and a Tanzanian friend, Pendo, cooked the beans and chicken.

Only one of the Tanzanians knew some English, so after lunch we sat around (on folding chairs under a tree) and talked. I asked each one to share their testimony and a little about their church (those who were pastors) and Bill Brouwer and I took turns translating. Mom and Dad asked questions and shared a little themselves too.

Many shared how thankful they were that God sent missionaries to Tanzania and several got mom crying by thanking her and dad for letting their daughter move here.

And EVERYONE, when I first introduce them to my mom and dad, says, "oh... mnafanana sana." ...You (mom and I) look so much alike! :-) I think that's one Swahili word that mom won't forget. :-)

Posted by Lisa Newland at 3:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Got to talk to an Australian lady who was a single missionary here for almost 30 years!! I asked her what one piece of advice she would give a new single missionary. Her answer, though nothing new or earth shattering, was a great reminder... contentment. Enjoy life wherever you find yourself. "Bloom where you're planted."

Reminds me of a prayer I just love...(quoted by John McCarther in one of his sermons.)

A prayer for contentment by Susan Coolidge

“Father, how can I thus be bold to pray
that Thou shalt grant me that or spare me this?
How should my ignorance not go astray?
How should my foolish lips not speak amiss and ask for woe
when fain they would ask for bliss?
How shall I dare to prompt Thee, the All-wise, to show me kindness?
Thou art ever kind.
What is my feeble craving in Thine eyes which view the centuries vast before, behind, and sweep unnumbered worlds like viewless wind?
Thy goodness ordereth what things shall be.
Thy wisdom knoweth even my inmost want.
Why should I raise a needless prayer to Thee or importune Omnipotence to grant my wishes, dim, short-sighted, ignorant?
And yet I come,
For Thou has bidden and said.
But not to weary Thee or specify a wish,
but rather with this prayer instead:

Oh Lord, Thou knowest.
Give it or deny.
Fill up the cup of joy or pass me by.
Just as Thou wilt is just what I would will.
Give me but this:
The heart to be content.
And if my wishes thwarted,
To lie still waiting till puzzle and pain are spent,
And the sweet thing made plain that Thou hast meant.”

Posted by Lisa Newland at 2:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I almost got my purse stolen in town last week, right out my car window while I was driving! But, because of the protection of my Good Shepherd they snatched it in front of 3 police ladies. Before I even knew it was gone, one of them was handing it back to me (along with a volley of words about my foolish for leaving the window down). The Lord is too good to me. I've got a lot of "street smarts" to learn, yet I'm not alone in the learning process!

Bill and Tammy Brouwer are back! Praise the Lord!! Although not fully recovered, he's getting there and we're all thankful to have them back on board!! Thanks for all your prayers!!

My parents are coming today for 2 1/2 weeks! Can't wait to see them and hear all the news from home and share with them my life here. I've invited 20 or so Tanzanian friends, some being pastors and their wives, to my home this Sat for a big meal! We'll also visit several of our churches and go to the Serengeti for a few days. What a treat!

Posted by Lisa Newland at 5:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"...and Lord, please help Uncle Don to be saved, amen."

Since I was a child we prayed almost daily for my dad's older brother, Uncle Don. We were never really close, saw him occasionally on holidays. Warm and friendly, but a very busy car salesmen. After separating from his wife, Esther, he got involved in various business deals. He was always looking for the next opportunity to make money. Most recently he was helping build shrimp farms in Mexico! Though interested in business, he was never interested in God.

In his early 70s, his body started shutting down- stroke, liver failure, pancreas almost gone, then staph infection from one of the hospitals. Saturday, Sept. 5th, 2009, Uncle Don passed away.

Without Christ, our life means nothing! A week before he died, when my parents went down to visit him again (in AZ), he agreed to listen to my mom share the wonderful news of a Savior who died for him. Too weak to talk, he nodded in agreement. I don't know where my Uncle is now. No one can know the heart of a man, but I pray that he understood and that I'll see him again!

"Neither is there salvation in any other (than Christ); for there is none other Name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Acts 4:12

Posted by Lisa Newland at 2:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sunday, September 6th~ 1st year anniversary of living here in Mwanza, TZ!!

"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain." I Cor 9:24

Posted by Lisa Newland at 2:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Watoto ni taifa la kesho.
Children are the nation of tomorrow. In the same way...
Watoto ni kanisa la kesho.
Children are the church of tomorrow.

It behoves us to teach our children well the truths of God’s Word if we want our church to stand strong tomorrow!

Thus... a Sunday school teacher’s seminar. Saturday, Aug 15th... and oh what a day! I had been working up to this moment for months; collecting materials, writing and rewriting session outlines, and translating and practicing Swahili with my language helper/ ministry assistant, Mariamu.

Our Tanzanian pastor, Pelegrino, organized food for morning break and lunch and invited teachers from our sister churches. Then came the before-event troubles: tire puncture, computer issues, and sickness. The day finally came; and, though we started 1½ hrs late, twenty-four teachers and teens from five different churches came!

Minutes before beginning, in the middle of before-speech jitters, the Lord spoke peace to my heart. In His still small voice He said, “Relax, you’ve done your best to prepare, now I’ll do the rest.” And He did! He helped my Swahili to flow (focusing on trying to communicate the message rather than having flawless Swahili), and He kept my mind clear and alert the whole day. To God be the glory!

I started with foundational truths: that God loves children and that children are not adults yet and need to be taught differently than adults. Then I led them through a step-by-step method to developing a children’s Bible lesson using only a Bible. We split into groups and practiced the various steps (including choosing a main topic, and preparing a good introduction and conclusion). Finally I gave some discipline tips and how to prevent behavior problems.

The very next day I saw a major improvement in one of our teachers. He spent much less time reading to the kids and more time telling the story (of the Good Samaritan) in his own words. As Mariamu and I continue our monthly rotation, we’ll see how much the other teachers grasped of the seminar; and, as we continue instructing teachers and modeling good teaching, I pray that each of our churches will grow in their love for children and in their skills in teaching them!

Thank you to each one of you who have made such a seminar possible by your financial support and prayers!

Posted by Lisa Newland at 2:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm in a bit of a quandry (sp?)... I was too busy to blog last month and now there's so much to say about the month, it'll never get said! Oh well, here's the highlights anyway...

~Mariamu and I taught at Fumagira this month. It was fun to be back at the church we started with in March and realize just how far we've come. It doesn't take near as long for me to prepare a lesson, and I'm much more comfortable leading the singing and teaching the memory verse. Mariamu has improved much in her teaching skills. She sees the value of preparing ahead of time and the importance of not reading too many verses in order to keep the children's attention.

~Major joy: I taught my first teacher's seminar! Aug 15th. (More about that later.)

~Major heartbreak: One of our Bible college students and children's teachers at our church in Igekamaja disappeared last Mon. Turns out she ran away with a guy who promised her wealth and who knows what else. It was so shocking to her family and everyone at church because she was such a faithful, go-the-extra-mile kind of gal (and she had recently agreed to marry a guy in our church!) I drove out with Mariamu and Pastor Pele to visit with her parents on Friday, thinking maybe it wasn't too late and we could somehow "rescue" her. Turns out the dowry had already been paid. Oh... my heart is still breaking for Eliza!

~Bill Brouwer, my co-worker, has been struggling with an infection and took an emergency flight to Nairobi to get more medical help. With his wife in the states, I've been filling in as "mom," staying with their 11 yr daughter, Abigail. Three weeks is a long to time to be separated from parents (2 mo. from mom). Please pray for Abby, and pray for Bill and Tammy as they have some big decisions to make in the next few days.

~Also, my uncle, Don, was just placed in hospice. Would really appreciate prayers that the Lord would work a miracle in his heart, that he would understand and believe the gospel.

Posted by Lisa Newland at 4:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)