Miracle make-up brushes and razors November 6, 2009

If you’ve ever wondered if God really cares about the small stuff, wonder no more.

We’ve been on the road for 4 months.  People often ask where we’re ‘based’ from.  Well, the best answer to that would be ‘our vehicle’.  If we stay in a place more than 2 or 3 nights, it’s a long time.  One of our least favorite things about it is packing and unpacking, and packing and unpacking.  You get the picture. Everything we need for our 6 month ‘trip’  is traveling with us.  And this time summer clothes only aren’t sufficient because we are here for some season changes (which I love!).  Suffice it to say, we have lots of bags.  It can almost be embarrassing!  And don’t get Neal started on my shoe bag…

We of course have a toiletry suitcase – yes, it’s a suitcase.  It’s a traveling vanity, really.  And I am 44 now, so it seems that more is required to keep me presentable.  Well this past week my razor broke (I’ve had it for several years and it literally broke) and my make-up brush fell apart.   I put it on my list of things to replace but haven’t gotten around to doing it yet.  In addition, I keep meaning to get a toiletry bag for Neal, because he’s been packing his stuff in a zip-loc bag.  It works, but it’s pretty dorky.  Haven’t done that yet either.

Why, you ask, is any of that significant?  Well here’s the miracle part of the story.  Yesterday, Neal had lunch with Brother Leonard and Jessie Ford, some very faithful partners of ours.  As seems to have become their custom when we see them every 2 years, they bless us with gifts for each family member.  I wasn’t at the lunch but Neal gave me my gift when he got home.  I couldn’t believe my eyes.  In my bag was a brand new razor, and packaged with that razor were 2 ‘bonus’ make-up brushes!!!!  How many people actually get a razor as a gift?  And have you ever seen make-up brushes packaged with razors?  Does Miss Jessie know how Spirit – led she was in her choices?  I can assure you that she had no idea what I needed.  It’s not like I go around telling people that I need a new razor.  For goodness sake I hadn’t even told God.  Also in my gift bag was a book by John Bevere – “Honor’s Reward”.  Just 2 weeks ago I ordered a few books on Amazon.  That was one of the books I had in my shopping cart, then we decided to wait on that one so I removed it.  Neal’s gift?  An Adidas toiletry kit, complete with some Adidas product.  I’m sure the gifts they have for the kids will be as much of a blessing to them.

What amazed me about all this, is that none of these things were things that I couldn’t have purchased for myself.  I could have gone to Wal-mart and bought these items.  But I firmly believe that God used Bro. Leonard and Jessie to give us those specific things, to remind us that if He can provide such ‘unessentials’ for us (though I guess a razor is pretty essential!) that He is more than able to provide us with the big stuff, with what seems impossible.  And if He knows our toiletry needs, He certainly knows the needs we have that will further His Kingdom!

I don’t know if miracles get any more personal than that!

January 7th, here we come! November 2, 2009

My, my, my how the weeks fly by!  That’s a good thing because even as much fun as we’re having, January 7th can’t get here soon enough!

We had a great few days in Dickinson, Texas with Pastor’s Carter and Laura Ware.  What an honor it was to be there for  the church’s 1st anniversary.  They have been supporting the work in Niger since they opened.  And we love their church name and vision:  “Faith For All Nations:  Our mission is the Great Commission!”  What a vision!  Had a great time with their family and loved spending time with several church members.  Wonderful people!  Pastor Carter ‘forced’ us to go to their kick-boxing class.  Now I have been doing pretty good keeping up with my workouts while we’re traveling (it’s the eating part I’ve NOT been doing well with) but that workout was downright mean!!  I’m pretty sure people would have paid dearly to watch Neal and I attempt to become black-belts in 1 hour.  2 days later we were both so sore that bringing food to our mouths was painful.  Tragic!  Thanks Master Garza!  “I buffet my body….make it my slave…. Yeah, right.

From Dickinson, we moved on to Conroe, Texas, to another new church pastored by some old friends.  They’re not old, mind you, just been friends for awhile.  It has been amazing to us how God has really connected us with new churches or new beginnings on this trip.  We had a fantastic time with Pastors Alan & Donna Anglin, pastors of Conroe Christian Center, a church that is going to multiply.  What an honor to be a part of that!  Donna not only supplied ‘our’ room with all kinds of goodies that we loved (but certainly did not need), we enjoyed lots of home-cooked meals.  We attended the Conroe Cajun Catfish Festival and met ourselves some real live rednecks.  (Is it okay to say that?) It was just nice to reconnect with friends and make new ones.  God is doing big things there.

Next, we flew from Houston to Minneapolis to see our kids!  We were excited!  This was on October 12th and our flight from Houston was delayed because of the snow in Mpls!  In October!  Despite the cold, we had a great time with Tanika and Tobi.  They have fit into their new but temporary world quite well.   My mom and dad picked us up at the airport and after a nice breakfast/lunch (yep, more food) with them, we went straight to the church, where we were going to meet Tobi at his choir practice.  Tanika met us there as well.  It was so great to see them and I had to make myself not think about the fact that we would be leaving again only 4 days later.   Tanika is quite busy with the online classes she is taking, and her 2 day a week babysitting job.  Great experience as she is taking care of a 1 and 3 year old.  Keeps her hoppin’!  But she’s great at it!   Tobi was ‘Star of the Week’ at school and we were his show and tell.  After he introduced us as his parents and missionaries, we all sang a song in Hausa while Tobi played the drum.  It was obvious how loved he is by his classmates, and by his teacher.  The feeling is mutual.    Then we answered questions from the kids like ‘Has Tobi ever been lost in Africa?’, and ‘Does Tobi ever get in trouble at church?’  It was very comical.  Tanika has helped in the classroom and it was very evident that the kids LOVE her as well.  One of them even told me she was his best friend.  Very sweet.   Though I’m more than thankful to be raising our kids in Niger, I’m also thankful for the experience in American culture that they are getting – just for a few months.  And they are making great memories with family that are priceless.  While I was wrapped in blankets (yes, plural), Tobi seemed to embrace the cold.  He would run around the house in his boxers.  It made me cold to look at him.  He was so sweet all week – wanting to make sure we were happy with him.  But the week did come to an end.  It was hard to leave again.  But as hard as it was, it was one of those things that we knew was for the best.  Tobi did much better this time around, crying only once.  Tanika and I were fighting tears as well.  The tears won.

Back we went for 1 more night in Conroe with the Anglins (and more goodies).  From there we traveled to Little Rock and though we weren’t able to stay with our good friends the McGowan’s, we were able to stay with our good friends the Dorsch’s.  My we are blessed with good friends!  We LOVED being back at Agape church – enjoying our first Sunday morning service there in over 11 years.  We ministered on Sunday night and loved it.  Neal said it was one of the easiest places he’s preached.  Monday night we had a get-together with Arkansas friends and really enjoyed meeting some of our partners for the first time.  Tuesday, after lunch with Pastor Pat and Kathy Dezort, we  made our way to Tulsa – an unexpected trip.  Having a condo (Neal’s mom and dad’s) and a son there is a big draw.  We used the few days to get a lot of stuff done, the biggest being the mailing of gifts to the partners we weren’t going to see.  Trae is doing great and was quite busy with all the things a motivated college freshman has going on, complete with a significant other.  We were happy to be able to spend time with both Trae and Christi and look forward to being back in Tulsa next week.  Trae turned into an official adult on Oct 11th- He was in Michigan on his fall break at the time.  That’s the first birthday we’ve not been together…

We returned to Little Rock for one more night, and were met with an incredible steak dinner prepared by John and Cathie Dorsch.  Our meal even included rasberry sorbet to cleanse our pallet.  What a treat!!!  Then on to Bay Saint Louis, MS.  Though new to us, this church has supported Neal’s parents for 31 years.  In fact the first check the church wrote was to their ministry.  Pastor Tyrone and Carol were wonderful and soon after we arrived they whisked us away to a local seafood restaurant, where the food was prepared the only way they know how to do it in the South – stunningly.  (For lack of a more dramatic word).  We discovered incredible people and amazing testimonies/miracles as we were given first hand tours of the effects of Katrina in this area.  This church- Word of Faith, was a center for 3 years for teams that came from all over the US to help rebuild.  Amazing stories.  It was an honor to be among them.

Moving right along to Covington/Slidell/Mandeville, LA we moved in for a few days with our good friends John & Deb Mauterer.  John is planning his 3rd trip to Niger in February – a medical team from Church of the King.  It was so much fun to meet with the team while we were there.  Because of John’s PR skills and our friendship, we believe divine connections were made in this area that will produce great fruit in Niger – and North Africa.  In addition to all the connecting, many memories were made.  First, they fed us what we have now dubbed ‘missionary crackers’.  Crackers that expired in 2007.  Rancid!  That’s all I can say.  In their defense, they did claim to have purchased them only 2 weeks earlier…  Then there was the Dakota’s fiasco.  They showed us the gift certificates they had for this high end restaurant and we were pretty sure that as good as we were at eating that we would not be able to consume that much food.  Oh, how wrong we were.  The atmosphere was wonderful, and it seemed as if we each had our own server.  More seafood.  Oh, incredible seafood.  And to think I used to dislike the stuff.  That must have been in a past life.  The entree’s were pricey, but sounded so wonderful.  So when they asked if we would like a salad we were shocked to find that the salad was not included with the entree.  But alas, no worries.  We had gift certificates.  So salads we ordered.  As well as beverages, appetizers and desserts.  They even brought us a complimentary appetizer – which is worthy of it’s own post!  Yep, we did it all.  Then comes the bill.  Neal, in his indirect/direct way asked if the certificates covered it. You see, we’ve never eaten food that expensive.  Ever. John says ‘It’s cool.  All we’ll have to pay is what we would have paid if we had gone to a ‘normal’ restaurant.”  Hmmm.  Okay.  Out come the certificates.  One of the servers brings them back a couple of minutes later and says “Excuse me sir, do you happen to have the plastic cards that came with these certificates?”  John pauses a bit and says, “hmmmmmm.  let me think. Ohhhhhh. Oops.   I just remembered, we’ve already used those.”  Ooops?  That’s all you can say?????  You mean you now have to pay for this entire meal?  Can we give back the salads?  Or, could we wash some dishes?  John covered it very well, acting like it was no big deal.  And in the whole scheme of life, it wasn’t that big of a deal.  But right then and there, Neal and I felt his pain.  Thanks John.  As time passes, the memories that were made that night will be well worth what they cost!  Despite the blunder, we had a great week and as I said, many connections were made.  And I was peopled out!

From there, we headed up to Shreveport, LA, another new church for us (we have really been believing God for open doors to new churches/support/partners this trip).   Eugene and Christy McBride are new pastors of Life Tabernacle, a church started in 1940.  A church that has a very rich history.  It was an honor to be in their pulpit.  After the service?  Well, we’re still in Louisiana so we ate.  This time it was smoked chicken and brisket, baked beans, potato salad and rolls.  It was Pastor Eugene’s daughter’s bridal shower.  So in addition to all of that there were loads of sweet things, complete with a chocolate fountain.  Homemade candy  – all in the chocolate family.  It was heavenly.  Just what we needed for our road trip back for the last time to Little Rock.  Which is where we are right now.  It is our 37th stop.  Which is why January 7th can’t come soon enough!

Moving right along October 4, 2009

Well, I haven’t kept up as often as I’d hoped, but this is better than 3 months.

We left our wonderful respite in Kingston, TN, but not until we had a canoe ride and once again got rained out.  But it was fun.  Because when I’m back in Niger, I will remember rain/cold times like that when I’m desparately hot.  I will close my eyes and if I think hard enough, I can almost feel the raindrops on my face.  Well, maybe not — but I can dream!

We traveled on to Knoxville, TN to visit seasoned Niger travelers – Pastors Jack and Jean Coleman.  They fed us way too much, and insisted Neal and I both beat them in a game of Rummikub, even though we were newbies to the game.  It was a fun visit!

From there we headed to Knoxville, KY where we stayed with Pastor Carroll and Debbie Parish, and were introduced to New Life Church where their son, Tim is the pastor.  We wore our African clothes, and since the people had not before met us, when Neal spoke in Hausa and I interpreted, and then he spoke English with a Nigerian accent, I was pretty sure people thought he didn’t know how to speak ‘normal’.  We had a great time.

From there we moved on to Christiansburg, VA where we stayed for 4 nights (a long time for us), at Crosspointe – a Four Square retreat center.  We had our own apartment which was wonderful.  I was able to start (and finish!) a ministry DVD for Neal’s mom and dad, and Neal and I both had time to prepare for our ministry opportunities for the upcoming weekend.  John and Susan Coleman, who run Crosspointe, took us out to a fun ‘hole in the wall’ called ‘ Due South for BBQ and real live banjo pickin’.  What fun! Cultural experiences wherever we go.

On we went to Jacksonville, NC where we spent a wonderful weekend with Pastors Wendall and Karen Ward.  It was an honor to speak at their women’s meeting on Friday night – and Neal got to speak to the men Saturday morning.  We had a great Saturday  – went out for lunch and coffee (which was fun, even though neither Neal nor I drink it – I happen to be dedicated to drinking tea), then meandered around a mall.   We did the Sunday morning service and were met by God!  What a great bunch of people.  It’s a blessing for us to be visiting our supporting churches consistently over the years where we can continue building on relationships.  It’s also very cool that wherever we go, God seems to really speak to the people, but always in different ways.  After a wonderful time fellowshipping with the ‘family’ after the service, we went to Emerald Isle for 2 treats in 1.  Seafood, and a walk on the beach.  Anyone who knows how much Neal and I love the beach would know how significant that is!  Great, great day!

Monday morning saw us on our way to, wait, let me think about it…Ummmmm….I need to check my book.  Oh yes, we went to Atlanta.  We stayed with Keith and Cherie Spencer.  Cherie is Don Powell’s daughter, and Don Powell is the man who is living at our house in Niger right now, and doing some awesome work.  Cindy, Don’s other daughter set up some meetings for us -the first with Pastor Tony and Sheryll, Don’s pastors.  They were great and really have a heart for the unreached.  They were a blessing!  Then we met with Pastor James & Marcina, whom we always meet with when we go through Atlanta, and give an update of our ministry. They loved and were moved by our DVD.   That was on my birthday and we decided to go out for lunch together.  While there, Pastor James ran into some friends and he not only ended up giving us a very generous offering, but his friend as well.  But that’s not all.  HER friend also gave us an offering.  Right in the middle of the restaurant!  That’s one way God has blessed us – by giving us influential friends.  The only reason that lady gave us a gift was because of Pastor James and Marcina.  And to think we weren’t even planning to go out together!  While in Atlanta, we had our traditional dinner with Don’s daughters and families at Gumbeaux’s.  That food is amazing.

And speaking of my birthday, which was on Sept 30th, Neal got up early, went out and bought me fruit and muffins.  Brought me breakfast in bed, complete with a dozen roses.  What a great way to wake up!  After our meeting, we went out for a movie.  As you can tell, a recurring theme throughout our journey is food.  So I’ve been working hard to try and keep up with my workouts.  After our movie, I did some laundry to get prepared for our journey the next day, and worked out on the elliptical machine.  While working out, Cherie arrived  home with the birthday cake that Neal asked her to pick up.  So there was nothing I could do but stop exercising and eat some cake.  But it was chocolate, which I hear is good for me, and filled with fruit – which I know is good for me.  So it’s all good.  I was very careful not to sweat into the cake.  It was a great day!  Except I really missed my kids.  But I talked to them all.

From there we made our way to Mandeville, LA to visit with Richard and Tina Kravet.  They have both been to Niger on medical teams.  They are such an incredible blessing to us, and they make us feel like royalty!   They insisted we sleep in their room.  I must admit it was wonderful sleeping in a king sized bed.  (Especially considering the recurring food theme).  Speaking of – we ate at a cool restaurant called Zeas (I think) and Neal got to eat lamb, which he loves.  Then they insisted we eat dessert at Bops where they force fed me chocolate custard with raspberries and cheesecake mixed in.  Then, if that weren’t enough, the next day they took us out on their sailboat on Lake Pontchartrain and Neal learned how to sail.  Then they brought us home and cooked incredible, edible shrimp for us.  They even took time off work to hang with us!!  You guys are great and can’t wait to have you in Niger again.  Anytime!

That brings me to today.  We tootled on down the road towards Dickinson, TX, but not before we stopped near Port Neches to meet with Pastor Stephen Samuels and his wife, his pastor, and others that have been on teams to Niger.  It’s always so much fun to visit with people who know where we are coming from.  It was great seeing them all.

We landed in Dickinson and Pastors Carter at Laura Ware’s house – pastors of Faith for All Nations church.  We are excited to meet the church family tomorrow.  It is the church’s first anniversary and it is an honor to minister here  on that special day.  They have been supporting us from the beginning.

As you can see, we have been blessed wherever we go.  God is good and His grace is always sufficient.  Sufficient when we travel hours and hours, when we are away from home, when I miss my kids, and when we are with new people all the time.  He has really given us a desire to meet new people, and then blessed us with the people we meet.

PS.  I have added a few more of Tobi’s literalisms since we have been on the road – they come to me from my sister-in-law Kim, who Tanika and Tobi are staying with .

It’s about time September 16, 2009

Well, I have nothing to say for myself.  I have not entered a peep into this blog since Trae’s graduation week.  And my how much has happened since that time.  I’m actually quite annoyed with myself for not doing so, as I’ve missed documenting so many things.  I’m now going to try and catch up using a list format.

(Warning:  I just re-read this and instead of a list format, It’s turned into more of a ‘list’ of paragraphs format.  In other words, if you choose to read it all, you may want to break it into several sessions.  I’m pretty sure it’s my longest post ever, and if you’ve ever read my blog, you know I write some long ones).  Here goes.

Trae’s grad week (that was my last post)

1 week to prepare for trip to US

‘Produced’ the ministry DVD we will be showing to our partners

Left for the US on Tues, July 7th – uneventful flight, arriving into D.C. on Wednesday

Stayed in Towson, MD with friends.  Neal’s sister Sarah and family met us in DC and we spent a few days together there, doing DC type things:  tour of our nations capitol – that was cool.  Lincoln memorial, Baltimore Inner Harbor.  Fun

Ministered at Captial Life Church in Virginia (DC area)

Drove from MD to MI where our church there provided a food stocked apt. for our family.  The first morning there I cooked bacon and Tobi almost passed out from the incredible smell of it.  Apparently, he doesn’t remember ever eating bacon.  He couldn’t stop talking about how wonderful it smelled.  Then we he tasted it he said he thought it might be the best thing he’d ever eaten.  Bacon!  Then he suggested that we let our friends in MD, from where we had just come, know about this incredible food.

Ministered in both Sunday morning and evening services in Davison, MI.  Neal preached in the morning.  Trae and I both preached in the evening service.  Trae’s first message in the US.  Trae also played his guitar while the kids and I sang.

Left Michigan and drove to Lake Nebagamon, WI, to spend a couple of days with my sister Marcia, and brother in law, Jeff.  There no one let Tanika live down the 4 – Wheeler crack up she had the last time we were there.  The tree she ran into is now dead…

On to Park Rapids, MN to spend time with my parents and family.  It’s a beautiful place on a beautiful lake and Dad always has the yard looking like a golf course.  It was there it occurred to Tobi that no one in America seems to have walls around their ‘compounds’.

Ministered at Park Rapids Assembly of God Church

Spent the week mostly wrapped in a blanket while watching the kids swim in the same icy lake I used to swim in when I was a kid.  My how times (bodies) have changed.  I went fishing one night with my dad and literally wore my mom’s parka, with the hood up.  It was July.  What we found very peculiar was Tobi. (Well, we often find him peculiar).   He never seemed to get cold.  He welcomes the cold.  In fact when we first arrived in DC and were talking to Grama and Grampa on the phone, they commented that they were trying to keep things warm for us.  Tobi nearly came apart saying he thought there was supposed to be snow in Minnesota!  So here we are in July at the lake and the ‘natives’ (my neices and nephew) have literally pulled their sleeping bags out of the tent so they can keep warm while being outside – and Tobi is running around in his bathing suit, and asking if he can go swimming.  Have at it was all I could say.  And swim he did.  I expected to see icicles form off his dripping chin.

August has come, and we’re on our way to Illinois – Mason City, IL to be exact.  We spent 2 nights at the Hampton Inn in Lincoln.

We ministered to the Sunday School class at Mason City Christian church where Joe Briseno is the pastor.  Joe was on Neal’s freshman wing at ORU nearly 25 years ago, and we recently reconnected with him through Facebook.  What a great time we had at his alive church, and with his family.  Our kids, jumping at any opportunity that comes that will give them a break from us, were able to see a movie and hang out with Joe and Cheryl’s kids.  Neal and I secretly welcome those opportunities with the same enthusiasm.  Don’t tell them I said that.  We were amazed at how great Joe looked after all those years and the day we got there he had just finished a 41 mile run for a charity.  41 miles!  I’ve been trying to keep up with working out, but that put us to shame!

We’re now on our way to Tulsa, OK.  It’s a bittersweet journey.  We’re looking forward to visiting ORU, but it also means the end of the road for Trae.  Literally.  His traveling days with us while itinerating are over.  He will enroll at Oral Roberts University, and when we leave there, he will stay.  We arrived in Tulsa on Monday evening.   After unloading our car at the condo on 55th and Lewis, (Neal’s parents have a condo in Tulsa which makes it incredibly wonderful for us to be there), we went to find some food.  To us, the most logical choice was Goldies – our favorite hamburger place in the world.  While raging about the burgers, Tanika orders chili.  Chili!  It was almost sacreligious!  And of course it was no good.  Goldies makes burgers, NOT chili.  She won’t be ordering that again.  While the rest of us were enjoying our burgers (the incredibleness of the burgers was lost on the kids) Neal and I were reminiscing about our arrival to ORU for the first time.  I recounted how my parents drove me down, we went through registration, and got our dorm assignments.  My parents unloaded my things into my room, and after a quick prayer were on their way.  I cheerily waved goodbye, while my brand new roommate began to cry and blubber- because MY parents were leaving.  Oh brother.  Neal’s story was much the same.  Dad came, registered, unloaded and left.  Trae’s only comment:  “So, don’t you guys want to do that?”

As it were, we were basing in the Tulsa condo for about 3 weeks, while traveling to our partner churches each weekend.  We spent the first week helping Trae get pre-registered.  Registration was not what it used to be.  Some of my closest friends today I met in the 2 day registration line.  We had nary a line to stand in, save the one on move in day to get Trae’s room key.  And that line proved to be very beneficial.  More on that in a bit.

We love the atmosphere on campus and ran into so many old friends while there.  You all know who you are.  And you can take the ‘old’ comment however you choose.  Everyone on campus was all about doing whatever they could to help.  After spending much of a day on the ORU campus Tobi made an interesting observation.  “People in America are so nice”.  What he meant was ‘people at ORU’, but we’ll let him think what he wants.

Move in day was August 7th, also known as Tanika’s birthday.  Her 17th.  This was the only line we had to stand it, and it was painless.  There was a student leader to walk each new student through, right down to helping them carry their things to their new dorm rooms.  I forgot our ‘guide’s name, but she and Tanika are now Facebook friends.  That’s what was so cool.  We would love for Tanika to go to ORU as well, for lots of reasons.  One being that we know the place, it’s influence, and excellence.  The 2nd being that we know so many people at the university and in Tulsa (not to mention her brother) that would be available for her, since we are a continent away.  We didn’t demand Trae attend ORU nor will we force Tanika.  Recently, she’s been talking about the possibility of other schools, reminding me that ORU is not the only school out there.  This, I told her, I know.  But what I didn’t tell her was that I think ORU is the only school for her.  I don’t really know if she has waded through and read this whole post or not, but Tanika, if you’ve read this far, you know that we believe ORU is the place for you!  I believe she now believes it as well.  I do not believe it was at all coincidental that the student leader that helped us was a worship arts minor and plays no instruments.  Tanika is interested in music, even as a major, and though talented, doesn’t play any instruments.  She sings.  She sings well.  So our new friend began telling her about the new International Worship Center that ORU is involved in.  I don’t really know any details, but it is something about trying to bring in worship from all different parts of the world.  I was so excited.  This is right up Tanika’s road.  And she already has international worship experience.  That was a long rabbit trail, but I was so excited about how God hooked us up with someone cool who could speak to Tanika.

Back to move-in day.  Trae got his key and we all carried his load to his room.  While many complain about the size of dorm rooms, Trae said he was surprised at how much room he had.  The rooms have micro-fridges in them, a big addition since I was there, that’s for sure!  There were others moving in, and in all on his floor, Youngblood, there were 13 new freshmen.  Tobi spent the rest of the afternoon with Trae on campus while Neal and I took Tanika to lunch for her birthday. Our good friends Phil & Brenda Blotevogel had a surprise birthday party for Tanika the night before (her 2nd surprise party, as my family had one for her as well), but we wanted to do something special on the actual day.   She wanted Chinese and we wanted to take her someplace nice so we went to P.F. Changs.  That’s like 5th Avenue Chinese food.  It was incredible!  While there, we were able to talk with Tanika about her future.  Right now I think she’s considering education – maybe even special ed (she’d be an amazing teacher) as a major, and worship arts as a minor.

The next morning we left Trae at ORU and went to Little Rock, AR.  We stayed with some of our best friends, Clifton and Connie, and ministered at Centerpoint, a partner church.

Back to Tulsa for the week  where we meet up with lots of old (there’s that word again) friends and get caught up with some correspondence.  We also spent time trying to book 2 open Sunday’s we had.  We attended ORU’s first chapel, and classes started for Trae.  The alumni office gave us passes to work out in the aerobic center, which I tried to do often.  It was a very surreal experience, I must say.  Here I am, working out on the elliptical machine and I’m remembering back to when I was in the same place 25 years ago.  Only I was riding a bike.  It takes me back as I look over the basketball court, reminding me how I used to look and see if Neal was playing.  Then I’m snapped back to reality when I see Trae down there, playing basketball.  What?!! I have a kid in college??!!?

The next weekend we drive to Garden City, Kansas to minister in Word of Life church, the church that came to us 12 years ago asking if we needed support. We had a few friends in Tulsa ask if Tobi could stay with them for the weekend while we went to KS.  I told them he had to come with us because I thought it a real possibility that we would lose our support if we showed up without Tobi.  Pastor Lenoir & Joe and Word of Life love Tobi!

Back to Tulsa for the ‘work week’, where we have more meetings/meals with more friends.  Our friends Gary and Gina offered their home to us and we had a get-together with Tulsa friends.  It was great to reconnect.  Tanika had an appointment with her Ophthalmologist and he was happy with how she’s doing.   He also examined Tobi, and they both had to wander around with dialated eyes for the day.  We pray blessing on Dr. Groves practice, as he always sees our kids, and charges us absolutely nothing!  I saw Dr. Payas for a broken tooth.  She also charged us nothing, made an appt. for me to get my tooth fixed in November, and gave us Sonicare toothbrushes!  We are being blessed!

It’s now the 3rd time we are leaving Trae/Tulsa, only this time it’s for a much longer time.  That was harder for me.  In fact since then, we have ‘t seen Trae.  We went back to Little Rock with Tobi and Tanika, to stay again with Cliff and Connie.  We think maybe their daughter Jaylen and Tobi may get married one day…

We ministered in Newport, at Southside church.  What a blessing it was to find out how closely they follow our ministry.  They knew everything about everything in our family and ministry, and even some things I had forgotten.  Southside, you are such a huge support to us!

Since Arkansas is our state of residence in the US, we got some things done like renewing of drivers license.  We laughed and laughed and laughed with our crazy friends and, visited more friends, and then had to be on our way.

On Wednesday we made the trip to Sullivan, IL, to minister in the evening service at New Life Tabernacle.  We were blessed with Liz’s home – she actually moved out so we could stay there for 3 days on our own.  And they filled it with food, too.  Had such a great time with more old friends.

Saturday we headed on over to Farmer City, IL.  It was such a short drive for us (1 hour) that Tobi almost didn’t think we needed to bother with seat belts.  You know you’re an MK (missionary kid) when you pray and fervently thank God that your trip the next day is only 5 hours long.

We were invited to stay with some church members who have a really cool farmhouse.  Actually, we were given the option to stay in a hotel or with the family.  We chose family.  Though being on our own is nice, we also are all about building relationships and what better way to do that than living with people!  They were wonderful and we were amazed as they gave us their master bedroom.  It was a different kind of beauty then we’re used to seeing.  There were cornfields all around the house.  We had incredible food too.  Saturday evening we went to Pastor Scott and Beth’s house for Papa Dels pizza.  My, my, my.  I’ve eaten lots of pizza, but this one takes the pie!  We enjoyed getting to know Pastor Scott and his family (he’s a new pastor in a church that has partnered with us since 1998), and visiting with more old friends.  Seems we have lots of those all over the country!

Sunday we ministered in Victory Christian Center and had a wonderful service.

Monday morning, our farmer friend Kyle took us to the part of the farm where the equipment is stored and we got to ride in incredibly huge tractors.  From there we were on our way back up to MN.  We arrived in the evening at my brother’s house.  Nadette, my best childhood friend, came over to visit.  We spend a couple of days there getting things organized for our next set of journey’s, and for Tanika and Tobi to be ready for school.   Tobi has been a bit apprehensive all along about going to school, so we took him to meet his teacher and see his classroom.  That helped.  She is wonderful and his classroom is great.

We then went up to Park Rapids, to my mom and dads for the Labor Day weekend.  This is a holiday that is lost to us when we’re in Niger – which we have been for the last 12 Labor Days.  We had beautiful weather – even nicer than we had in July.  The lake was as beautiful as it was frigid – 69 degree water is not warm enough for me to deal with – even if I’m made fun of.  Tanika and Tobi rode on tubes with their cousins, and they both tried and succeeded at kneeboarding.  We were able to see cousins we hadn’t seen in forever, and my 91 year old Grama that had never met Tobi was able to be there as well.   We had a wonderful final Fall weekend together and then headed back to Isanti, to get Tobi started in school.  Tanika is doing online classes with Switched on Schoolhouse.  Tobi went to school on Tuesday with his cousins.  Kim took him to his class and he did well.  Though it is all a bit overwhelming to him.  25+ kids in a class, and 6 – 3rd grade classes.  We had lunch with him one day and we even felt a bit overwhelmed.   Tobi started getting weepy on Tuesday – concerned about us leaving.  He is a sensitive soul, but he’s never been this emotional before about us being away.  And we have been apart before.  All we can think is that us leaving, together with a new school, left him feeling a bit unsteady.  Thankfully he’s with my brother and family, as well as Tanika.  They’re all great.  Tanika on the other hand was ready for us to go, waving cheerily down the driveway as we were on our way.  (We had been staying in what will be her room for 3 months).

My friend, Nadette, prepared an incredible meal and invited a few of my high school friends to join us.  Wow.  I haven’t seen them since, well, High School.  What a great time that was.  And to top it off, Nadette gave me an ice cream pail full of my favorite soup – chicken wild rice.

We planned to leave Friday so had to say goodbye to Tobi when he left for school.  It was not a happy scene as he has tears running down his tanned cheeks while he hugs us.  He’s speechless until he gets into the back seat and Kim rolls down the window.  As she’s pulling away, Tobi smiles through his tears, waves, and says “Bye Mom”.  There is no way I can reproduce the sound of his voice with words.  I can’t say I was tearless myself.  Sheeesh!  It was harder leaving Tobi for a few months than it was leaving Trae!  We plan to be back to MN in 4 weeks to visit the kids and know with all the activities planned for all of us, that the time will go quickly.  Right?  For now, we talk to Tobi and Tanika daily, and today his teacher even sent me an email and picture of him in class.  Pretty cool.  He’s doing well, but still feeling uncertain about all the protocol that is called school.

Now we are doing something we have never done before.  Itinerated without our kids.  We’re hoping we’ll maintain/increase our support.  We have always known what an asset our kids are to our ministry, and they still are.  But now they’re not with us!  We had a 2 day drive in front of us so we broke it up and stayed Friday night in Champaign, Il.  Actually had a nice drive/night.  It is definitely easier and cheaper without the kids, but not necessarily better.   I got Neal to work out with me in the fitness room, then we had dinner and enjoyed the hot tub.

Saturday we made it the rest of the way – to Spring Hill, Tennessee.  It was great to see Pastor Jim Maddox and we loved hearing about his biblical views of politics over dinner.  That is one passionate man!  We ministered at his church on Sunday morning and enjoyed being in the new sanctuary of Straightway Christian Center – a building that has been in the works for many years.  Everyone was asking where the kids were! Neal and I sang as we usually do, but it was seriously lacking without Tanika and Tobi!

Believe it or not, I’m almost up to today’s date.  Monday we left Spring Hill, TN, to drive east to Kingston.  We are currently staying at Whitestone Inn.  It’s a luxury Bed and Breakfast and is it ever incredible.  It’s owned by Paul and Jean Cowell and they make it available free to missionaries for 2 nights, then half price after that.  We decided to stay an extra night for 1/2 price.  Yesterday when we arrived, thrilled with the hills and beauty, we were presented with a note from Miss Lucy, a woman we do not know.  It said that she wanted us to know that she was praying for us, and that she was taking care of our entire bill, and also wanted us to have a meal in the reservations only restaurant, on her.  We were astounded.  But that’s how our God is!   Indescribable!  We have really enjoyed our time being away, alone and anonymous.  I guess I’ll call it our Triple A trip.  I’m just too funny.  Yesterday we played croquet, surrounded by small mountains, pastures with beautiful horses, and a lake.  Today we worked hard at relaxing and nearly missed breakfast.  I began working on this epistle, and Neal read and napped.  Our room has a jacuzzi tub and I have used that 3 times in 24 hours.  This afternoon we went for a walk around the gorgeous grounds.  We came across a sign that said “Trail”  Go left for the 2 mile version and right for the 4 mile.  Since it was 5:15 and our special dinner reservations were for 6:30, we opted for 2 miles.  Well.  There were lots of trail signs.  Lots of them.  But none specified which trail we were following.  Keep in mind that we’re in Tennessee.  Think hills.  Lots of those too.  We got lost.  Didn’t even know which way the road was.  These are some thick wooded hills.  And we’re talking about people (us) that are now more accustomed to deserts and wide open spaces.  Getting concerned that we’ll miss our dinner, we started jogging.  Uphill.  Did I mention it was humid?  We finally managed to find a place we had been – only because it was an open field with some very large and hairy cows.  Big.  So we backtracked.  Jogging.  We arrived back at the ‘Farmhouse’ at 6:30.  Others were already seated.  We nearly ran into the waiter.  He looked at us and said “Is it hot outside?”.  No, thank you, it wasn’t hot.  But it was humid.  And we had just run a marathon in the hills and were literally soaked through all our clothes.  We quickly went up to change – and decided a quick shower  would be required, just so we could stop sweating.  The waiter, an MK we later learned, was impressed with our speed getting cleaned up.  Our heart rates returned to normal and we enjoyed an incredible meal.  We then went to play another round of croquet – which I will admit Neal is ahead of me 3 games to 1.  But there is time for a comeback.  We don’t leave until Thursday morning.

There you have it.  The last 10 weeks of my life.  I am thrilled to have this finished, and I vow to myself to do a better job keeping up with my life.  I’ve missed alot of funny things Tobi has done/said, and now I can’t remember them.  I’m hoping circumstances will jog my memory so I can get them down.  For now, I’m signing off.  Just not sure I can move to put this computer down because my marathon sore legs don’t want to.

Cheers and Tears. Grad Week June 6, 2009

It all started last Saturday.   Once again Grandma and Grandpa outdid themselves.  They had a graduation party for Trae.  They invited the high school, students and staff, and both of our churches here in Niamey.  That counts for alot of people.  Our guess is around 100.  Food for 100 people is no small thing.  But Grama wasn’t satisfied with just having finger sandwiches and desserts.  Not for Trae.  We had homemade meat pies, homemade enchiladas, (yep, the tortillas were homemade too), fried chicken and jolof rice.  Jolof rice is a Nigerian rice – happens to be my favorite African food.  It’s rice cooked in a red sauce with meat.  And pepper.  Red pepper.   But I can’t do it justice just by describing it.  And they didn’t plan for people to eat rice like American’s eat rice = as a little side dish.  They planned for everyone to eat rice like a real African.  Piled mountain high on the plate.  Thus there was not just one or 2 large pots of rice.  There were 2 coolers full of cooked jolof rice.  Not small drink coolers.  I’m talking about the big ones you fill full of food for an all day picnic.  The people came and the people ate.  And ate.  And of course there was cake.  What’s a grad party without cake?  There were also 5 crates of cokes and 5 gallons of koolaid type stuff.  And of course gallons and gallons of water.   I prepared the picture display that needed to be done for grad night so we could use it at the party as well.  People enjoyed seeing pictures of Trae from the time he was born through impending adulthood.  It really was  a great time – and a great memory for Trae.  Thanks, Grama and Grampa.

The next big event was the Senior Banquet.  This isn’t your traditional prom or Jr/Sr type banquet.  The purpose of this banquet is for the parents to affirm and honor their students.   What a time we had!  The junior class is also involved, giving humorous and/or serious predictions of how the future lives of the seniors will look.  The banquet was held at an air conditioned hotel.  And it wasn’t the kind of AC that just took the edge off of the 100 + temps.  It was really cool.  Wonderful.  And the food!  It is the first buffet we’ve ever been to in Niger.    We heard frequent comments like “this is the best food I’ve ever eaten in Niger’.  It was good.  After eating, there was a slide show showing past and present pictures of the seniors.  It was fun for us to see all of Trae’s friends during their growing up years.  And we had some embarrassing shots of Trae to throw into our mix.  (Think a 2 year old Trae sitting on a bouncy horse with Tanika.  Tanika is wearing one-piece pj’s.  Trae, however, is naked.)  You get the idea.

The slide show was followed by the juniors singing a special song to the seniors – which appeared to be very meaningful to them all.  Then the juniors did their predictions.  Lots of thought and creativity went into their presentation  – which they did verbally, using a power point.  Trae’s prediction was given by Rufus – his former roommate when he was in boarding school, and very close friend.  His prediction went something like this.

Trae will graduate from Oral Roberts University with a degree in youth ministry.  He becomes a youth pastor but then receives a call to return to Africa.  He returns to Niger and establishes the largest church in Africa – in Niamey.  Through his ministry the percentage of Christians in the country rises.  From there he travels to several African countries and his motto is “signs, wonders and miracles”  Those signs and wonders follow his ministry.  He then becomes a successful musician but after a concert is in the wrong place at the wrong time and was in the middle of a gang fight when he gets shot.

What a prediction!  But it indicated to us how Trae is viewed by his classmates.

Following dessert (real creme’ caramel and fresh fruit), it was our turn – the parents.  We started by being humorous.  And we were pretty funny.  We chose the Gilligan’s Island theme song and one of the creative parents wrote several verses about the student’s high school years.  You remember in the song where it says “There’s Gilligan, and Skipper too”.  For that part, we named the students.  Then we’d stop singing and the respective parent would come out and do a short cameo for their kid – in whatever style they wanted.  There was rap (or attempted rap), opera, singing etc.  Neal ‘preached’ our part.  He started by preaching ‘I want to tell you about a boy named Trae.  Ronald Neal Childs III.  He went on to talk about the funny names we’ve called him, how he loves his hair, his cowboy phase and I love Barney days.   Then said that no matter what he’s called, we’re proud to call him our son.  He ended by saying “Can I get an amen?!”   And the room responded .  We all dressed like our kid – hat, shirt or something representing them.  It went great.  I’m going to include the words to the song at the end of this post, so I’ll have them for posterity.

The fun part was followed by the hard part.  We parents had 3 minutes to talk about our kids – whatever we wanted to say.  I’m going to add here what I said.  It was an emotional time for all of us – everyone fighting tears, though at the same time so proud and excited about who our kids had become.  And I think I can speak for all of us when I say that.   This is what I said to Trae and when I spoke I almost felt like he was the only one there.

Trae, I remember the day I found out you were coming.  Dad, Mr. Organized, wrote in his Franklin Planner that his 1^st son would be born in October ’92. You arrived in October ’91.  I was happy because I didn’t want to wait a year for you.  We knew that someday we’d be in Africa so we started praying before you were born that you’d be adaptable and fit in wherever God placed us.  We saw the answer to that prayer.  We got off the plane in Niger at 6am and you heard kids playing next door to Grama and Grampa’s house.  You insisted on playing with them immediately.  The next few hours found you directing all the activities going on  — you insisting that all these Zarma children understood your English.  What they understood was your loud voice and gestures.  In Maradi, you were a very valid part of our ministry, particularly children’s ministry and music.  We appreciate how motivated you are, which is why you were a successful homeschooler.  I would often find you in your room at 7am, almost done with the day’s lessons.  Not because you loved learning so much, but because you wanted to go outside and play with your friends.  That motivation has served you well, and will continue to bring you success.  Speaking of success, we recognize that you have many gifts and abilities.  What we want you to recognize is that they are all God-given.  Given to you to help fulfill the purpose for which He created you. I believe you have already been faithful with what God has given you and because of that, He’ll increase those gifts even more and will use you to establish His Kingdom.  One day you’ll understand that there is no greater joy than to see your children loving and serving God.  But for now you should know that you have brought us that joy.  I can’t even express how much you will be missed when we return in January.  We will intensely feel your absence in both our family and ministry.  But at the same time we are so excited about this new stage of life you are beginning.  You have learned (sometimes the hard way) that when you make the choice to obey God, there is absolutely nothing that is impossible.  We are so proud of you and it brings me great joy to say that you, Trae Childs, are my son.

And that’s how the night ended.  I thoroughly enjoyed hearing all the parents honor their respective kids.  And something occurred to me.  I have been saying all year that Trae has been blessed to part of an exceptional class of students.  They are a great group – all of them.  But after hearing all the parent’s declarations, I realized why.  They all have amazing families.  Families that love them and pray for them and expect God’s best for them.  I don’t think they will realize how blessed they are until they get to where they are going.

Thursday was Graduation Day.  To be honest, I felt sad all day.  But I realized that my sadness was really only selfishness.  Trae certainly wasn’t sad.  He was excited, and ready to move into the next ‘phase’ of life.  So I had to make a decision to be happy – for him, instead of sad- for me.   The graduation was held outside, and God held the rain.  We have just entered rainy season and it rained the night before, and late the night of graduation.  But the evening of it was clear.  The graduates marched in to the traditional “Pomp and Circumstance” – all smiles.  The music group (which Tanika is a part of), led some worship.  Then the commendation was given by Daniel Meade, the math teacher.  He did an excellent job and it was obvious that he had the heartbeat of the graduates.  His comments to Trae were that he was a natural born leader, and because of that he will be held to a higher standard.  He said he believes that Trae will use his charisma and initiative to serve others.   He also said that Trae was determined and when he decided to do something, nothing would stop him – not even being hit by a truck!   The graduates each had 2 minutes to speak and through their emotions they all did their families proud.  It was moving.  The address was given by Mr. Tim Tjosvold and he spoke from  John 15, encouraging the graduates to ‘remain in Him’.  Then came the diplomas – a very joyful time.  Neal prayed the prayer of dedication, and the newly graduated adults marched out.

A reception followed where each of the students had tables showing pictures of them growing up.  After that reception they had their own party – an all nighter.  They ate, swam, watched movies and ate more.

Now, it’s finished.  13 years of school.  Done.   But yet  it’s time to start again.

Trae, you’re the best and we’re proud of you.  You were number one in your class, and though it’s cheesy to say, you’re number 1 in our book too!  We love you!

Senior Parent Skit ——–Song

To the tune of “Gilligan’s Island” Theme song.

Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale

A tale of a special class

That started in this tropic spot

Without a lot of grass

Their parents have all left their homes

For this isolated spot

Aboard a sailing skyboat

To a place where it is hot, to a place where it is HOT

There’s Anthony

And Jessie, too…..

While they’ve been here

There’ve been a lot of changes at Sahel

They’ve learned through many hardships,

The lessons will serve them well.

New wall, sports field, new library,

What more could they ask for?

If there could be a swimming pool

Life wouldn’t be a bore, it would never be a bore.

They’ve been on many outreach trips

To places far and wide

Some even went to Galmi

For a ten hour ride, a ten hour ride.

Benin, Tera, and In-a-tes,

Some went to Makalondi

Like being on Survivor,

It was primitive as can be, yes primitive as can be.

There’s Chantell Bliss, and Suzanne too

And Chris Potratz……

The Internet is down again

I have a test that’s due.

And Nigelec went off at ten,

I think I’m gonna sue, I think I’m gonna sue.

No lights, ac, nor satellite,

What’s wrong with this country?

It’s hard enough to study

It’s frustrating as can be.

They went away on a long, long ride

To see a strip of sand.

They lived in the lap of luxury

In another foreign land.

They had to raise the money

By selling lots of food

To make their trip enjoyable

At this tropic, beachside ‘hood.

Seafood, Mercy Ship, 4 Wheelin’

And body surfing too.

They broke a bed which they all piled on

It was a great big hoot.

Here’s Phil and Tam

And Trae Childs, too….

So this is the tale of the 10 classmates

They’ve been here a long, long time.

They’ve had to make the best of things

It’s been an uphill climb, it’s been an uphill climb.

Their teachers and the StuCo, too

Have done their very best

To help them learn and have fun

Right next to Eagles Nest

There’s Esther Kim and Susanna….

And now it’s time to say goodbye

To this class on their new quest.

We’ll pray for you support you.

We wish you all the best.

And the heat goes on. May 22, 2009

Sunday we went to church.  We always go to church on Sunday.  Do you ever go to church expecting to sweat?   We do.  And I’m not talking about a little dampness that you dab with a dainty handkerchief.  I’m talking about the kind of sweat that happens when someone is doing an anaerobic activity in triple digit temps.  But here, all you have to do to obtain that kind of sweatibility is sit.  Yep.  Just sit.  So imagine what happens when 50 people are all dancing/worshipping and the church is 115 degrees inside (at least).  There are literally puddles of sweat around people’s feet (your’s truly included).  We sweat right through our Sunday best.  What amazes me is the joy with which people worship.  In this heat!  With no plans of going home to cool off in their air-conditioned homes.  I think most would agree with me that in my home country, if the temperature in church rises above the level of handkerchief perspiration, some pretty serious grumbling will ensue.  Not trying to step on toes, just stating the facts ma’am, just stating the facts.  I’ve been there.  But I must say that since my blood has thinned,  if I am in a church in the land of the free I need a parka. And gloves.  Or at least a blanket.  Even if it’s the middle of summer.  I’m not kidding either.  I may not carry a blanket to church, but the fact remains that I need something to keep my body temperature above 95.  What would probably help is a good dose of African praise – the way our church does it.  It may not produce a pool of sweat around my feet, but it would prevent icicles from forming in my nose – not to mention the stares and chuckles my dancing would attract!

Since we try to hold off turning our AC on in the daytime as long as possible (especially right after we get our electric bill), I have developed a method I use to fool myself.  And I did not say ‘to make a fool of myself’, though that is probably debatable.  I put my workout clothes on if I don’t have to go anywhere.  With my workout clothes on, my brain knows that I am supposed to be sweating.  So sweating isn’t so uncomfortable.  Then I do some office work outfitted in this attire.  I sweat, but It’s expected so it doesn’t really bother me.  At least that’s what I tell myself.   I just have to be careful that the sweat doesn’t roll off my nose and into my laptop keyboard.  And I may end up with a small puddle around my feet, but that’s ok, because that can easily be wiped up – the floor is tile.  No worries.

The thing I do have to be careful about is when I actually do the workout.  I do it directly under my fan.  I’m telling you, it’s not a pretty sight.  I have my sweat cloth (beach towel) nearby, with a 1.5 liter bottle of water.  I know my workout is finished when the towel is soaked and the water is almost gone (I’m kidding about the beach towel – I only use a thick, thirsty hand towel).  It’s the cool down/stretch that gets me into trouble.  I sweat so much that when I bend down, sweat pours into my nose and I start spurting like someone just sprayed me up my nose with a rubber hose.  Life is rough.

Then there’s the shower after the workout.  If I have time, I like to wait at least 30 minutes before showering, or I kind of defeat the purpose.  I just keep on sweating when I’m done – never really drying off.   That’s partly due to the fact that during this season, the only shower one can take is a hot one.  Even though I know this, I find myself always reaching for the cold knob – to turn it up.  But ‘cold’ is all that is on.

This too, shall pass.  We’ll be back to our normal 95 degree days.

I know it’s hot season……but COME ON! May 8, 2009

I was born and raised in Minnesota.   Depending on how much you know about the place, it may  conjure up images of beautiful lakes, fields of corn and wheat and pine forests.  Which there are plenty of, and I have pictures to prove it.  But you will more likely think of  snow covered houses, frozen lakes,  winter coats in July, hockey and arctic temperatures that are so cold you can’t imagine unless you experience them.  Like the Christmas it was -50 Fahrenheit.  That’s 50 below 0!  And no, that’s not with the windchill.  With that factored in it was -100!  No kidding!  When you stepped outside, breathing became difficult  -even painful.  It felt as if your eyes would either freeze open or shut.  And woe to the bloke with a runny nose.  He would be sporting ‘nose-cicles’.   Schools closed as often for the cold as for snow – maybe even more often because of the cold.  You get the idea.  I also remember when it started to ‘warm-up’.  After a few days of what could be considered ungodly cold, the temps reached a new high. 3 degrees.  That’s ABOVE 0.  And do you know I almost considered shedding my winter coat it felt so much warmer?  How’s that for perspective?  But the subject of this post was supposed to be about the heat…

Let’s just keep that thought – but jump to the other extreme.  Have you ever walked into a room that is 92 degrees and said something like, “This feels so good – it is hot out there!” (referring to anywhere outside of said room).  That’s what hot season in Niger is like.  We’ve had lots of people visit over the years, though not many during hot season.  (Feb/March – April/May).  Most all of our visitors comment on the heat – no matter what time of year it is.  We knowingly explain that yes, we do understand that they feel hot when it is a very dry 90 or 95 degrees, but that this isn’t really hot – at least not the kind of heat that Niger is famous for.   In fact I recently heard a couple of weeks ago that the Washington Post reported Niger as the hottest place on the earth – probably on a particular day.  I didn’t see the article myself, but I certainly had no trouble believing it.  We try to explain the heat to people but always fall short of being able to describe what it is like.  Kind of like not being able to relate to -50 if you’ve never experienced it.

I’m not talking about a record breaking temperature hot day or series of days that one may find in the South or even the Midwest.  I know that those temps can be hot, but I’m talking about the kind of heat that makes one glad they will not spend eternity in Hades.  One reason the heat gets so intense in our house is because the walls are all made of cement.  Yes, cement walls are cold to the touch when it is cold outside.  But have you ever touched a cement wall that has been baking in mostly 100 plus temps for days and even weeks or months?  It’s too hot to touch!  Imagine if you will the heat that then radiates from those walls, filling the rooms with it’s (unwelcome) warmth. And though the temps drop into the 90’s at night, it’s not enough to cool the house down before another round of record breaking, sun baking temps hit.

Here are some of the things I have observed when we are in hot season.  They are not exaggerations…

1. Cold showers are not possible.  Tap water is hot and must be run first so as to not get burned. (at least we have tap water!)

2. Pots and pans are hot, right out of the cabinet (requires less gas to heat them up!)

3. Dishes, glasses and silverware are too.  Like they’ve been in a warmer.  Imagine putting your salad in a warm bowl!

4. Clothes come out of your dresser feeling like they’ve just come out of the dryer.

5. Ever washed your hair with heated shampoo?

6. Taper candles in the house bend over forming an upside down U, whether they’ve been lit or not.

7. 120+ degree days are common.

8. Pillar candles in the house  just kind of melt/flatten out.

9. You’re happy when the temperature drops below 100

10. Our fridge, which usually partially freezes our drinking water during other times of the year, is doing good to keep the water semi-cold.

11. You live in a state of perpetual sweat (I am proof that sweating does NOT promote weight loss).

12. It’s not possible to ‘cool’ a cake after it’s been baked.  It remains hot.

13. The tile floor is warm enough to feel like it is heated.

14. The air conditioner can cool the room to 92 degrees in the heat of the day.

I’m sure that those that live here would be able to add their own experiences with the heat as well…

Why, you ask, do we not just air condition our home?  Well, the biggest reason is the cost of electricity.  We use the AC’s in our bedrooms at night, because we made a decision that a good night’s sleep is worth about any cost if it will help us be more effective in what we’re doing.  Trae, Tanika & Tobi also have AC’s in their rooms that they use at night.   Trae moves Tobi into his room when he goes to sleep so we only have 3 AC’s running all night instead of 4.  During the worst of the heat, we use the AC we have in our office in the afternoon, otherwise we’re kind of worthless getting any work done.  We also use 1 AC in the evenings when we are relaxing, etc.   We feel we are relatively conservative in our AC use, but our electric bill is still about $400-$500/month.  So imagine what it would be if we used more!  Enough said!

One of the benefits in living in these temperatures is that it doesn’t take much to cool us down.  I am ready to pull out a sweatshirt when the temp drops to 75.  No fooling!  And look at the experiences I’ve had.  I can live in extreme cold and I can live in extreme heat.  And I can be happy in both places!  Really, it’s all about where God wants you to be.  He gives the grace to have joy in it all.

Press Release May 5, 2009

At approximately 2:30 am – Saturday morning, a Royal Air Moroc plane landed at the Niamey, Niger International Airport,  carrying 2 very important people – Rev. & Mrs. Ron & Jerry Childs. AKA Mom & Dad, Grama & Grampa; or Mommy & Daddy to hundreds, maybe even thousands of Africans.   They were arriving home following an unexpected extended stay in the United States.  Of course the plane was carrying additional passengers, but none as distinguished or precious as the aforementioned.  Neal & Danette Childs, along with their 9 year old son, Tobi were allowed inside the secured area to welcome them as they entered immigration.  The first face they saw was Tobi’s, whose ear to ear smile told all those around him how happy he was to have Grama & Grampa back where they belong.  A reliable source reported that when Tobi went to bed Saturday night he declared he would not be able to get to sleep because he was so excited about their return.

The joy didn’t end there.  All of their bags arrived in tact and even the customs officer seemed happy, as he allowed them through without opening a single bag.  Outside, grandkids Trae & Tanika were anxiously waiting their turn for a hug, together with a group of pastors and church members who were standing with welcoming arms.   It didn’t matter that it was the middle of the night.

Any bystander observing the small crowd would easily notice that Rev & Mrs. Childs were just as happy to see their extended family, as the family was to see them.

The group was seen circled, singing a song of praise to their God in the airport parking lot.  After a prayer of thanksgiving, the crowd dispersed and the Childs family returned to their home, right where they belong.

Catching up April 19, 2009

So. We have traveled from the western part of Niger to the eastern section – Diffa. Pretty close to the ends of the earth. But I have to say it had been quite awhile since I’d been in Diffa, and I was pleasantly surprised by the development there. There was a brand new paved road – and it was right in front of our church!  When we bought that land a few years ago, we didn’t know it be right in the middle of a ‘metropolis’.  But God knew.  And I’m telling you, it’s a nice road.   While we enjoyed ourselves out there very much, the time had come to make our way home.  Another 2 day journey in front of us.  But the roads were improving, and we had good company.   I will have to say though, that I’ve never seen anyone with the ability that Sharolyn had to be able to sleep in the car.  And this was not driving down Interstate 95 either.  Probably something closer to trying to drive out to see the Beverly Hillbillies.  Pretty impressive.

Two days and countless potholes and speedbumps later, we arrive back into Niamey -which now did seem like a metropolis when put into perspective from whence we had come.  But our journey with Jack and Sharolyn was not yet over.  Oh no. In February every year there is a softball tournament in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.  Trae went 2 years ago.  Neal & Trae went last year and when they came back Neal kept talking about how much fun it was and said that next yaer we should all go together.  Agreed.  I just had no idea how quickly ‘next year’ would roll around.  It happened to fall during Jack and Sharolyn’s visit.  We thought it might be something they would enjoy as they have been to Niger multiple times and this would be something different.  So we asked them this:  Were they interested in flying from California to Niger, taking a 2 day drive to Diffa and back, and then taking a 1 day drive not to another town, not to another state, but to another country to watch a softball game?  Being the adventuresome souls that they were (and are), they said they’d love to!  Whaddya think of that?  What would you have said?  It was hot (however, not ‘hot season’ hot like it is now) but it was really like a little slice of America for a weekend in a West African country.  There was no apple pie, but there were hot dogs and  ice cream cones!  For real!  And it was over Valentines Day weekend, so that made it even a little more special.  We all went out to eat with Trae and Tanika (Tobi too) and some of their friends.

OH, but the games!  There was a social league and a competitive league.  Anyone who knows Neal or Trae doesn’t have to think very long to figure out which league they were in.  However, they were on different competitive teams.  This is very similar to the NUTS tournament that is held here in Niamey in October.  I believe I wrote about that one – Neal’s team and Trae’s team ended up playing each other in the finals, Trae’s team walking away with the victory.  Much to Neal’s, ummm, how shall I say it?  Disgust.  Yep, that’s it.  Disgust.  So, here we are again.  Different country, same teams.  Pretty much.   The 2 teams were matched with each other for their first game.  The old guy’s (Neal) team won.  If I was more with sports talk, I would have probably remembered the score.  On the tournament went, with neither team losing any more games.  It ended up with Team Nomads (the mature guys) and the Sahel Sons (the ‘younger’ set, mostly) facing each other once again in the finals.  The Nomads were looking for the win.  OK, both teams were looking for the win.  But the Suns had won it in October, and besides, the Nomads were undefeated.  Can’t they take turns?  I’m pretty sure no one wanted to win as much as Neal did.  Even if it meant beating his firstborn son’s team.  He never plays anything except to win.  It is scriptural you know – run the race to WIN!  Anyway, it was the final game and was it exciting.  I wish I could remember all the details and spell them out like someone on Sports Center.  That, however, is not me.  But I’ll do my best.  Nomads were up the whole game.  At one point, by quite a few runs.  (at least I didn’t say touchdowns).  Last inning and the Suns have last ups.  They are down.  I believe (don’t quote me on this) they needed 5 runs to win.  Well, can you believe they got them?  There was a bit of a discrepency at the final play – something about whether a base was touched or something like that.  But when that final play brought the winning run in, real live mayhem erupted among the Suns.  They were walking on air.  The Nomads, however, were not.  Once again, victory eluded them.  The interesting thing about the game, was that there were 4 sets of fathers and sons playing – fathers on Nomads, and sons on the Suns.  We took a picture of the 4 pairs, where the Dads were supposed to be cheering for their sons.  It was a real stretch for Neal.  I will post the picture soon.  But what about us Moms?  Who were we supposed to be cheering for?  Husbands?  Sons?   I’m telling you, it was a stressful thing!   All in all, great fun was had.  Good food was eaten.  And our good friends enjoyed themselves having traveled from the ‘ends of the earth’ to  ‘Little America’ in a matter of days.   And Jack even got to play on Neal’s team in one of the games as someone was out for injury.  (You know how it can be with those old guys!)  Jack was thrilled to do it.  Sharolyn, however, was not.  She was concerned about being able to get a stretcher onto the airplane they would be boarding 2 days later.  I think Jack was a bit stiff, but I’m pretty sure the fun he had far exceeded the pain.  Oh, and Sharolyn told me that she couldn’t believe how good the attitudes were of all the players, both from Niger and Burkina.  The teams were made up of mostly ex-patriots, but there were a few nationals that played.  She said if we were really in the US, well, she couldn’t repeat some of the things that would be said.    Way to go teams!

Neal is slowly getting over their defeat.  Though I  think it’s still a bit painful to talk about, he is happy for Trae.  This was Trae’s last tournament, since he’s headed for university this year.  I have to wonder though, if there won’t be some kind of a rematch – many years down the road.  Could happen.

Blogging Hiatus April 15, 2009

hia·tus (hī āt′əs) noun

“any gap or interruption, as in continuity or time”

I have been on an unplanned blogging hiatus.  An interruption of sorts, but I can’t really identify what the interruption has been.  It’s certainly not because I haven’t had anything to blog about.  There’s been plenty – believe you me!

January was the beginning of our new bible school format – modules.  Three weeks of classes; Monday- Saturday from  8-12 & 4-6  every day.  It went great and all 9 that started, completed successfully.  There will be 5 of these throughout the year, then a graduation.  I taught “Roots of Character”.  A class that can uncover some not so pleasant revelations in your own life…  At the end of the month, Tanika had another eye attack for which much prayer went to the throne and like always, God came through.  The attack we precipitated by a soccer ball to the face while in P.E., kicked by one of her siblings who shall remain nameless (but he was in her PE class).   She is no longer playing soccer – or contact sports of any kind.   Then we had some very good friends/ministers come and did tons of stuff with us.  They were the speakers for closing of the module.  We then took them to Park W, the game reserve in Niger.  It’s camping, but tents are provided, complete with cot beds.  Not bad at all.  Thought it was unseasonably warm for early February (it’s always unseasonably warm if you ask me), the nights were still cool enough for hot chocolate and  a sleeping bag – seriously.  You get a real feel for what darkness is out there as  there is no electricity. The campground is not fenced in but is in an open area, nestled into the middle of some rock formations on one side and the river and some trees on the other.  We woke up to monkeys swinging in the trees around us.  We saw lots of cool stuff, the biggest being the elephants.  And we got pretty close to them too.  Good thing it was too hot for them to charge (so I tell myself), because I’m pretty sure they could have outrun us, as close as we were.

We then took our guests on to Maradi for a couple of days for some ministry in our churches there.  Then it was Diffa or bust.  We have now traveled from the western side of Niger to the eastern side – 2 days drive.  Not many visitors have been out to Diffa with us.  But they were game.  We had a great time.  We were there to install a new pastor in the church.  The current pastor was relocating toa church in Niamey, and the new pastor and family was an answer to prayer.  We have reached many Fulani people in Diffa, but we’ve not had a pastor there that can speak their language.  Pastor Abdu and his wife Aissa both speak Fulfulde so it is a great fit.  They are not new to us as they have been pastoring with us for a couple of years.  The changeover was an emotional time and the whole church, including Pastor Zabeiru, was in tears.  That was a good thing.

Lamido, a Fulani king, has been in our church for more than 3 years.  We are trying to reach out to his ‘tribe’ but it is challenging as they are nomadic so are never in one place for more than a week or so.  While there, we drove out to find some of them – not an easy thing to do.  Not sure how many kilometers we went, but it was many more than if we knew where we were going.  Understand, we were not driving on a road – not even tracks.  Just desert.   First we found the well.  It was quite amazing.  In  my almost 11 years in Niger I’ve seen many wells, but I’ve not seen anything like this one.  I certainly didn’t expect to see it suddenly appear in the middle of a barren, windy, desert.  What a contrast!  We were driving along and there it appeared, behind some scrub brush.  The first thing we saw though, were the herds of longhorn cows, donkeys, goats and sheep.  Apparently this well was built for the Fulani, to provide water for them and their animals.  How they find it is beyond me.  Maybe they have a GPS.  It was a large, round cement structure with 4 wide mouth slanted cement platforms off the bottom of each side.  The water was poured from homemade rubber ‘buckets’ into each platform and then drained into nicely built cement troughs for watering the animals.  It was a very hot, dusty day and these beasts were ready for a drink.  But they all had to wait their turn.  It was something to see.   Also something to see was how the water was pulled from the very deep well.  Two donkeys were tied together and tied to a rope.  The bucket on the end of the rope was dropped into the well, and a small child – 6 or 7? had a stick to smack the donkeys forward.  They walked and walked and walked until the bucket appeared at the top of the well.  The big person at the well would pour the water into the trough thingy and then shout.  The shout was the signal for the child to turn the donkeys around and bring them back for another run.  This was all done in triple digit temps.  This is all done daily.  Makes me think twice when the only effort I put into getting water is twisting my wrist.  OK, some days I have to fill a bucket from our outside water storage and bring it in when our water gets shut off.  But there are no donkeys involved with that.

On to visit one of the Fulanis’ homes.  And I use the term ‘home’ loosely.  Lamido was in the vehicle with us, directing us and we’re pretty sure he has no clue where we’re going.  But he’s having fun.  All of the sudden he shouts at us to STOP!   Apparently we were driving into someones’ living room.  Pardon us.  All we saw off to the right was a bush and behind that bush was a bed of sorts.  Rather regal looking really.  It had 4 carved wooden posts on which was layered 6 or 8 mats.  The more mats, the better, apparently.  Under another bush were various brightly colored cloths, covering household goods – gourd bowls and spoons mostly.  We backed up and, well, parked.  No two – car garage here.  Not even a bit of shelter from the sun.  It didn’t take long before there were quite a few people assembled.  Not sure where they came from as I’m pretty sure I didn’t see people as we were driving on our barren ‘road’.  The men naturally assembled together on a mat under a tree.  Neal and Jack began sharing the gospel with them.  Pastor Abdu was there as well so he was able to interpret from Neal’s Hausa to Fulfulde.   Sharolyn and I began ‘talking’ with the women.  Girls, really – smiling at and holding their babies.  I managed to find a Hausa speaker (well, she had a little bit of  Hausa) so I had the ladies all sit down (no mats for them) and I began sharing the Gospel with them.  Something they had never heard.  I was given the preferred place to sit – on the bed.  They were so open and when I asked if anyone wanted to receive Jesus, most of them raised their hands.  I waited for Pastor Abdu to finish so he could come and pray with them in the language they would understand.  That’s what it’s all about.   Now, it is Pastor Abdu’s job to start discipling these new believers.  We are thinking about a plan to be able to bring some of them into Diffa for a time of dicsipleship.

You know, this is the kind of thing I think of when people tell me that they are so thankful that God didn’t call them to Africa.  We’ve even had people say they feel sorry for us,  having to live where we do.  But how many people do you know  get to experience what I’ve just described?  How many of you have had the opportunity to share the Gospel with someone who didn’t even know of its’ existence?   Don’t feel sorry for us.  This is a privelege.  There are many that are a part of reaching the tribes and nations with us, but we are the ones that get to be on the front lines -  experiencing  it first hand!  Sure, there are days that the heat seems too much, the people too resistent, the traffic too crazy, and life just too frustrating, but it’s all worth it.  Because we are seeing with our own eyes the Gospel bringing people out of bondage, changing their lives.  Every tribe and every nation will profess that Jesus is Lord!