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Today I did something only my dad has done before. I got a hole in one! It was at St. Andrew's on the 11th. (This is only a Wii game - Tiger Woods 2008; I couldn't get a real hole in one to save my life! ;-) Anyway, I was playing the back 9, so it was only the second hole I played. On the hole before, I had, I believe, gotten a birdie. So I was playing well. Unfortunately, I didn't play well after my hole in one, and I ended up with an over par game.
Today the puppies got their tails bobbed. We have four male and two female pups. Since there are 6, each person in our family got to name 1. Christine named her girl Jenna. My boy's name is Dixon. Susie's boy is Footy. (We told her that is a silly name.) My dad's is Gunner and mom is taking the other girl and hasn't named hers yet. Ab hasn't named hers either. Well... that's all folks!
This morning I preached from Romans 7:1-13 and informed the church that we have been wedded, through belief, to the Lord Jesus. We are not tied to the law and its judgments anymore, amen! The law's purpose was fulfilled in our lives when we discovered our guilt before God and inability to live up to the expectations of the Torah. Now, through the blood of Christ's Cross we have been cleansed from our misdoings and redeemed from the penalty of death.
There was no movement at the invitation, but it appears that some of this small group are beginning to grasp the truths of the Word. Thank you for your continued prayers.
On Monday our dog, Lexi, had ten puppies, but four died.
It is real fun to have puppies.
If you have never seen our digital shows online... Check 'em out!
Tanzania Treasures - high speed
A big THANKS to Phil Steed for hosting these on his site!
Today's Monday post office run was AWESOME! A friend sent us the Tiger Woods 2008 Wii game. Too cool! This made for a very relaxing afternoon. Thanks Will and Heather!
Coming down off yesterday's high, today was a bit anti-climactic, but a blessing, nonetheless. This morning's meeting put the finishing touches on the revival services that began Thursday. Brother John Naftary preached on "Glorious Garments" from the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32. There was a good crowd of 35 in attendance, with a few new faces that were brought in during the revival.
I was very pleased with the love that this young church showered on Brother John. They gave him what I think is a substantial offering for them - 50,000 Tanzanian Shillings ($45 USD), as well as some food and personal care items. Before dismissing church, a few of our people stood up to give a testimony of thanks to God and to Brother John for what the Lord did in their hearts this week!
Once we left Kingereka, Paige, the kids, and I took John to Arusha where he will be boarding a bus in the morning to make his way back home to his family and ministry in Bariadi, Shinyanga.
Six folks signed up for soul-winning today. We conducted two separate sessions: one in the late morning, and one in the early afternoon. There was much fruit from the efforts, as four individuals received Christ as their Savior! (Two of the four were a husband and wife, together - GLORY!!)
The following meeting was red hot. Brother John preached on "The Miracle of Salvation" from Exodus 12. He masterfully cross-referenced Matthew 12:39-40, "But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonah: For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.", and spoke of the fallacy of the modern day signs and wonders movement that is sweeping the globe. To some, the salvation of a soul is a small thing, BUT... To those who are saved, the preaching of the cross is the power of God that saves souls.
This was, by far, our best day yet with over 50 in attendance, and three people who walked the aisle to trust Christ as Savior. We appreciate your prayers for these meetings!
It was "Open Line Friday" as we called a couple of members to remind them that they had signed up to go soul-winning with us today. This afternoon we went out in two sets of 3 and did some visiting. Praise be to God... each team was able to return with a report that someone had prayed the sinner's prayer for salvation!
After two hours of visiting it was time to begin preparations for the service. We wired up the sound system and started singing around 4:00p. By 4:30 a decent crowd had assembled and we "officially" began the service. Our evangelist, John Naftary, preached from Psalms 23 on "The Shepherd's Praise". It was a great message and propelled the meetings forward.
After spending the morning and early afternoon getting the generator to start and putting the finishing touches on the sound system, it was off to Kingereka for the first meeting of our four day set.
We used all of Pastor John's gifts as he wired the system, played the guitar, and preached! He did a great job and God was glorified during the service. The message was on salvation from Acts 16:16ff.
Though no decisions were made it was good to see several familiar faces and a few visitors in church. Fibi got her baptismal certificate and Bible this evening.
Pastor John Naftary made it into Moshi from Dar Es Salaam yesterday. Today, our main objective was to obtain a sound system for the meetings he will be preaching for us this weekend. If you can believe it, this seemingly simple task took all day!
Arusha has more to offer in the electronic department than does Moshi, not to mention there is a shop that will take a VISA credit card in A-town. (Now, I know you have seen the commercials: "VISA... It's everywhere you want to be!" My only reply to that is... "I guess there are some places around here that you just don't want to be!" That is, very few stores accept VISA cards.)
We got to the shop, Benson's, around 11:30a.m. (It is a 1.5 hour drive from the house.) One of the manager's set us up with a pretty nice system, but we wanted to check around at some other places anyway. Since everything closes from 1p-2p for lunch John and I went to McMoody's for a burger, fries, and shake. Once the stores opened up after lunch we went to check at what we thought was another shop, Sound & Vision. Low and behold... It is owned by the same family. lol.
So, it was back to Benson's to make the purchase. Before closing the deal it is customary for the products to be tested by the store to ensure that the goods are functioning properly. That was all good. Amen.
After getting the system we needed power. We looked around a few places for a small generator. Once we had spent an hour walking around looking at different options we selected the cheapest, smallest one and were on the road again at 4:30p. Whew!
It is 8:30p and we are going to watch a replay of the MLB All-Star Game on ESPN International. It starts at 9 and I doubt I will be able to stay awake.
A couple of snapshots from Sunday.
Five of the Faithful getting Baptismal Certificates and Bibles.
(Eliana, John, Nasson, Maiko, Remsi)
Moses got to the service a bit late, but was presented his certificate and Bible at the end of the service.
Me, Shelly, Joseph, Abigail, and Christine played basketball. Me, Shelly, and Chris were on a team, and Abigail and Joseph were on a team. We didn't get to finish the game because it was supper time.
Sunday we all went to church. After church we went to a restaurant called Pepe's One. Then we dropped Shelly off at a hotel and said "Good-bye." She was waiting for someone to pick her up so she could go visit a school. Tuesday she will take a shuttle to Dar and Wednesday she flies back to America.
KNOW – RECKON – YIELD
These three words sum up Romans chapter six and is the formula for living out our faith in Christ. Some of the final words of Romans 5 are “sin abounded, grace did much more…” So, some may think that the more we sin the more grace we get. NO WAY! We must know that we were crucified with Christ, reckon that we are dead to sin, and yield ourselves to the righteous works of God. The folks at Kingereka received the message with gladness today, and it was a blessing to share these words with them.
The message was just right for today as six people got their baptismal certificates and a new Bible. Glory!
This week we are planning revival meetings as John Naftary will be in town preaching for us. As believers left church today, they were given flyers to hand out to their friends, inviting them to the meetings which will be held Thursday through Sunday.
Also, after church, we went, in parade fashion, to the house of Sister Sophia. Sophia recently gave birth to a bouncing baby boy, Joseph Baraka (whom I was afforded the privilege to name). When we got to Sophia’s house I was delighted to see that she had prepared us a place with benches and decorations for the gathering. After some singing and giving of gifts (blankets, diaper covers, soap), Brother Remsi gave a short devotion of dedication, and we had a special prayer for little Joseph. Then, Sophia gave a word of testimony and thanks. God has been blessing our church.
Me and Shelly played Barbies. We were on a basketball team. I got to have a picture on her back. We took a walk outside and talked.
We got back to school a couple of days ago. I am in 4th, Ab is in the 7th, and Susie is in 3rd. I like the 4th grade. It's fun. It's harder, but still fun. I think 4th grade will be more fun than third grade. My mom is a very good teacher. I hope the rest of the year goes well.
I was out in Kingereka early this morning to mow the property. Our plot really stands out from all of the others as we are surrounded by corn and sunflower fields! Since we have our mid-week service on Thursdays, I have been trying to have the church open all day. This way the folks know that they can come for counseling or take me on a visit to their house or a neighbor’s.
Before I actually started to mow I worked on moving some rocks off the lot and did some cleaning up. While I was busy with that a young lady named Martha showed up. Martha goes to a Charismatic Church and told me that she was not interested in joining our church but wanted to know if I could give her a job. I told her that while we understand that there are many physical needs around us, our emphasis is on the spiritual and eternal well-being of the souls of men and women. So, I asked her if she had ever been saved and what that meant. She told me she had seen visions and heard God’s voice; that she worked righteous deeds and had forsaken sin. (She made no reference to the Bible, the Cross, nor Jesus Christ.) I told her that I am not her judge but by the sound of her testimony she was not biblically saved. I informed her that we need to rely on God’s written Word, not audible voices and apparent visions. Then, I explained to her that the ONLY WAY to be born again was to place her absolute trust in Christ’s finished work on the Cross. Majaliwa had given her a copy of the Romans booklet last week when I was home ill. I encouraged her to read the plan of salvation given in the booklet. She then told me that she had trusted Christ as I said, but I asked her why she made no mention of it when we began our conversation. Please pray for Martha. Pray that she would possess true salvation for her eternal sake.
A couple of days ago I started school. I am in 7th grade and it is quite a bit different. For one thing, I have more teachers. The I've ever had was three, but this year it increased to five. Their names are Mr. Ashworth, Mrs. Shannon, Mr. Duby, Miss Stancill, and Mrs. Howe. Right now my top three teachers are: (1) Mr. Duby; (2) Mr. Ashworth; and (3) Mrs. Howe. Secondly, I have a lot more homework. It's like... every subject, every night! It takes a lot longer than before. Then, of course, lastly, I have to adjust to the 6:30 a.m. wake-up call. ;-) Other than that, 7th grade is a lot of fun!
After a 10 day bout with malaria I finally started feeling better Saturday evening. Sunday was a good day as was yesterday. I went to the doctor’s office today for a follow-up blood slide. From all indications the parasites are out of my system, and a clean bill of health lies ahead. I had never felt so bad for so long. Thanks for all of your prayers, and sorry communication and the blog have lagged behind.
Joseph (4th), Susanna (3rd), and Christine (K-5) started school today. After six weeks off of school, it is the right time for the children to get back to their studies. This seemingly early start is necessary because of some breaks that will be coming in September and November. Plus, this will ensure that they have plenty of time to finish before our furlough departure on May 18, 2009.
Today is a national holiday in Tanzania: Saba Saba (Seven Seven). It is a day set aside to celebrate the toil of those who till the ground for daily bread. Abigail got started with her 7th grade school year today.
The services in Kingereka were an encouragement this morning. For the first time in several weeks, almost everyone was in church. Our attendance was 30, and I preached on The Foundation of Salvation from Romans 5:12-21. During the invitation a couple of people came forward to pray.
Though I was encouraged to see all of the familiar faces gathered together at one time, it has been a while since we have had any visitors. In Kingereka we are building for the future, as there are not many houses near the church. (There are many houses going up, and some businesses that have purchased property near the church. In the near future the population of the village will grow.) But, this does not keep us from praying and working in the present and seeking the lost that are within walking distance of our property.
Today me and Ab went to a tennis tournament. (Susie was too young.) The tennis tournament was at the Arusha Gymkana. I lost my first match 2-4, 5-3, 1-4 (you have to win two sets, first to four games). Dad went and got some pizza for lunch. Then, I lost my second match 2-4, 1-4. I only played twice then we went home.
We were able to celebrate America’s Independence today with several other missionary families. It was a pretty laid back day. The first item of business was, of course, eating! We grilled hamburgers and hotdogs, and everyone pitched in for the sides. Dee-li-ci-oso!!
After everyone was satisfied, there were activities galore! Some were playing ping-pong; some the Wii. The children had fun riding bikes, on the tire swing, and playing games. Many of us women sat and fellowshipped, while sneaking in a dessert or two ;-)
