Day Off in Doro

Joshua in our market 

This year Eli and I committed to making sure we take a day off every week. Since our weekends are full of ministry in the camps, we chose Monday to be our day off. Some Mondays are a real challenge to actually get a break when the rest of the neighborhood is starting their new week. Last week we hosted the Commissioner on our day off! This week, our Monday Rest Day was a big success and we're feeling so refreshed by it.

Yesterday started out slowly, sleeping in and having a leisurely breakfast. Around 10 am Joshua and I went on a date to the Bunj market which is a 10 minute drive from our home. It was fun to explore around the market looking for what we needed and also finding new things that have come in from Ethiopia and Uganda.

Hole-in-the-wall shop

 I couldn't believe my eyes when I spied Coffeemate powdered creamer in this shop!

Josh and his buddy Nathaniel

 After our afternoon rest, we walked down to the river with a few friends to cool off in the water.

The water felt so good!

Eli made the kids laugh with his magic tricks

The kids even braved a water/mudslide

Fun and pain all at the same time

We finished off the day with a big bowl of chocolate peanut butter popcorn, cold sodas, and Mythbusters. I'm so thankful we had a successful day off!

Evan's Unforgettable 10th Birthday

Starting the day with 10 candles in a coffee cake 

Yesterday was Evan's 10th birthday. It was his 1st birthday in Doro and as we reflected on his 10 birthdays, we realized that he rarely has had a birthday in the same place 2 years in a row! What an adventurous life he's had so far! Not only did we start off the day with yummy coffee cake for breakfast but I declared it a holiday meaning, No School. The boys were thrilled!

In the afternoon friends came over to help fill water balloons for the party.

Filling them was a game all in itself!

Everyone was wet in no time

We still ended up with a good number of filled balloons

Part of the obstacle course Eli made

Another fun game Eli did with the kids

All we served was cake and juice but it was a treat for everyone

No one could possibly look cuter in those party glasses!

...Except maybe little Claire

Water fight

Besides the non stop fun all day, Evan was showered with love by our teammates. At the end of the day Evan realized that one of the perks of being on a big team is that he got lots of treats from everyone and he felt so loved. 

What's a pedicure in Mabaan county like?

In the heat of the afternoon I walked over to some of my dear neighbors this afternoon with a small bag of sugar and a bottle of fun nail polish. One of my friends had complimented my toe nails last week and I told her I'd bring it over and paint their nails one day soon. Today was the day. Before we got around to painting our nails however, babies needed to be held, coffee beans needed to be roasted, kudra (greens) needed to be plucked from their stems and the pigs needed to be constantly "shooed" away. Please look closely at the picture above and you can see everything I've mentioned.

Little Rahab could hardly contain her excitement when she first laid eyes on the bottle of bright pink nail polish so I did her nails first - little fingers and tiny toes. Thanks to the dry heat, it dried instantly and she walked around showing it off to all the older ladies.

In the shade we sat, 2 of us on a mat on the ground with 2 babies on our laps, 2 mischeivious  3-year olds and about 15 pigs, a pregnant sheep and 2 panting dogs. No joke, all these animals were crowding around us because the dogs were looking for shade and the pigs and the sheep kept trying to steal the greens we were preparing for the evening meal.

Soon the strong, gingery coffee was poured and as I waited for mine to cool a bit I got up to go paint one of my friends' toe nails. We chatted about things like sick neighbors, the prices of things in the market, and whose baby got a new tooth this week. It was lovely chatter and my heart overflowed as I painted the dry but beautiful feet of my friends. When I came home to report to Eli about my afternoon while I began fixing our dinner, I commented that somehow these wonderful ladies have accepted me and welcomed me into their "circle" of friends and though I don't always use the right Arabic word or understand what's going on around me, there is love present.

Today Simon spent most of his time on my lap. He loves playing with my necklace and pulling my hair but I can tell he knows that I love him. I've known him since the day he was brought back from the hospital. Today just before I got up to head home, he peed all over my lap. His mother, my dear friend, was mortified that he'd done that but I just stood up, brushed it off and said, "He's giving me a blessing." And what a blessing he is!

I am so thankful for afternoons like this when I can surround myself with this beautiful culture of love and community. All I can hope is that my presence with them on these hot hot afternoons are as much of an encouragement and blessing to them as it is to me!

Bits of Pieces of our life lately

Life long friends 

One of the highlights of this last week was when one of the boys' best friends since 2007 in Yabus came to visit us after we hadn't seen him for a few months. Just before Christmas, their friend German moved back to Yabus with his family and we weren't sure when we'd see them again. It was a wonderful surprise one morning in the middle of doing school to find German and Butrus (another friend) at our door! They had walked all day the day before to get to Doro. They didn't come just to see us. German's parents sent him with money to buy things in our market that they can't get in Yabus. It was so special for the boys to catch up and Isaac gave German the Christmas gift he bought for him while we were in Kenya - an English Bible.

Kaya Church

 2 Sundays ago we worshipped with one of the young churches in the furthest camp, Kaya. Our Mabaan pastor friend and his wife, and our teammate Merina came along and we had a sweet time of fellowship and encouragement from the Word of God.

So you can see what our drive looks like - the roads are great!

Boys making friends

 Every Saturday and Sunday, while we're out in the Ingassana camps, our boys are amazing at making friends and making the most of the hours while Eli and I are teaching. Last weekend they took cards along and played games.

Doesn't take long to bond

Friends from Melut days

 Yesterday a family who graduated from Gideon Theological College in Melut came to visit. I had visited Miriam and her five children earlier in the week and then they came to see us. Her husband (a GTC grad) is now getting studying for his Master's degree in Ghana. This is the giant baobab tree in our backyard where we often host our visitors.

Evan and his good neighbor friend, Santi

How many boys can squeeze on one tree branch?

 One of the things that brings me so much joy in my life here in South Sudan is watching my boys thrive, make friends, and be out in the community. I am so thankful that they feel at home here and can make friends so easily.

Josh with the hen he named Midnight

About a month ago the boys decided they'd like to start raising chickens. They even used some of their own money to buy a few hens. All the chickens have names and are already multiplying. One hen has 2 chicks and another hen is laying eggs.

Evan with Caramel

Since we have a major animal lover in our family, we end up caring for some of the most interesting creatures. A few weeks ago this Abyssinian Roller bird landed in our compound and was too sick to fly. Joshua tried to feed it water and ants but it didn't survive. Sure is a beautiful bird though.

My friend Jawahir and her newborn daughter

 It was a joy to visit my friend Jawahir yesterday and celebrate the birth of her first daughter after four sons! She lives in Gendrassa and is married to an Ingassana man.

3 countries in an "airplane"

 This is a picture a teammate took of the boys playing on the other missionary compound with their S. Sudanese friend and their little Ethiopian buddy. I love how they can take a pile of junk and turn it into a game.

Father and Son bonding

Dating in Doro

Dining in the great outdoors

   It is not common for a man and woman to do anything alone here. When two of our sweet teammates invited our kids to come over for dinner and games last night, Eli asked if he could take me out for dinner on a date. That was very thoughtful of him, however, dining out here in Doro means a very different thing than you might be imagining in your mind. It might mean we have one thing to choose from on the menu (since South Sudan is experience high inflation, people can't afford to keep their businesses open.) There is also the chance while on a dinner date in the market that others might join you for your meal. Needless to say, I chose to make an easy meal for the two of us to enjoy at home. We set up a table outside with a tablecloth, flowers and a cold drink and solar lights for ambiance once the sun set.
    It was so lovely to pause in the busyness of our first month back in Doro since Christmas, to talk and eat pudding under the stars. Moments like our date (only 2 weeks after Valentine's day) are what can really recharge and refresh us in our day to day lives here.

Week by Week

     Though there are things that happen every day that we don't expect and life can feel overwhelming at times, we have many moments in our days where our hearts are full to overflowing because we have the honor of seeing God move in incredible ways here in South Sudan. On those days, though I'm tired, sweaty and nastily covered in dust, I am deeply satisfied and thankful for where we get to live and what adventures fill our days. I've been thinking it would be helpful to share what a typical day is like for us. So here it goes, let me try.

Our Classroom

   

  Our day starts before the sun comes up with our time with Jesus. By 8:30 the boys and I start homeschool and Eli is usually doing computer work in his "office", our extra bedroom, or running around meeting with teammates or local pastors. If I had to estimate, I'd guess I serve about 5 liters of cold juice on my porch to guests every day. We have a revolving door since many people come to talk with Eli regarding Theological Training by Extension and discipleship. Some days I call a recess so I can stop and serve juice and tea to guests on our porch and then the boys and I resume school. We are usually done with almost every thing on our schedule by 12:30 and then we head to lunch club. Lunch club is a wonderful thing our team invented where you  pay something per day and you have your lunch cooked for you! We have participated in lunch club ever since we arrived in Doro last year because then I don't have to interupt school to cook lunch.

Serving friends on our porch

     After lunch we come back home and the boys have an hour and a half of silent reading and Eli and I try to catch our breath as well with a cold drink and maybe catching up on emails and doing computer stuff. In the afternoons Eli is running around again with many meetings with people and sometimes trips out into the camps and I like to go visit with my neighbors and enjoy a cup of coffee in the shade. I also like to check in on teammates on the different compounds to see how they're doing. The boys are usually playing with their friends. Some of their favorite spots are up in trees, in the sand pit near our house, and at their friends' house among the pigs, goats, cows and chickens. Last week our boys received their first gift of a rooster. He is a bare necked colorful chicken with the new name Gamecock - in honor of the South Carolina Gamecocks. :)

    This is a typical day from Tuesday-Saturday. On Saturday afternoons we head out to Yusif Batil camp at 1 pm and spend most of the weekend out there teaching our Bible class with our Ingassana brothers and sisters. We are cruising through the Old Testament stories and it is exhilarating seeing how quickly and passionately they are grasping new truths and holding on to it. On Sundays we drive back out to the Ingassana camps and worship with them. Usually we end up visiting after church and not getting home until 3-4 in the afternoon.
   

A full church on Sunday morning

Singing their praises

     Needless to say, after weeks like this, we are ready for a break come Monday.We have been taking a Sabbath on Mondays- trying to do things as a family and rest and refresh in ways that fill us up for the following week. 

   We are thankful that we've had good health as a family during this first month back. One of the challenging things in this season of the year is that it is so hot which makes everything a little harder. Last night our thermometer said our house was 98 degrees F at 9 pm! I'm trying to be creative as the heat makes us cranky in school to pause and make a cold drink for the kids or play a quick game of water balloons for PE.

Their water balloon was a lot of entertainment for our neighbors!

As I said in the beginning, our life might look like a fun adventure, and that it is, but it's also difficult and straining at times. Will you please pause and pray for our family as we seek to thrive here as a family - in this incredible place God has called us to?

The Body of Christ

Eli teaching Sunday school

Reuniting with special friends

           I want to preface my story today by saying this story is much bigger and greater than the small part that I know. But the part of the story I know and have taken part in is so beautiful and encouraging that I want to share it with the world.

            As many of you know already, Eli and I have had the immense joy of teaching the Bible and discipling new believers among a Sudanese tribe called the Ingassana. They are originally from an area north of us but due to war have fled to our county and are hungry to learn the Truth about Jesus. We spent our first four months in Doro last year, with a small team of missionaries and Sudanese believers, going out to three different Ingassana camps each week to teach them God’s Story from the beginning. In December when we planned to leave South Sudan for almost 2 months because of Christmas vacation and a conference we attended in Kenya, we believed that God would provide others from the Body of Christ to teach and encourage these baby churches. This weekend we saw just how GREAT our God is and the beautiful ministry He carried on in our absence.

            One of the groups of new believers in a camp called Yusif Batil were so desperate to continue learning the Bible that they wrote a letter to the Mabaan SIC (Sudan Interior Church), requesting they send people to teach them the Bible and to encourage their small group of new Christ followers. The Mabaan church (host tribe of all the refugees) responded by not only sending one or two people, but they met together and wrote up a schedule so that every Sunday a group of Mabaan believers would go out to encourage the church in Batil.

            This morning our first stop was in Gendrassa where we joined a small group for Sunday school. Eli was asked to share a lesson and he told the story of Noah and tied in the gospel saying just like the people of that day could not save themselves in the flood, there is no way we can be saved except through Jesus. Children who had gathered outside the church to get a glimpse of these strange white people and their children came in and listened.

Driving from one refugee camp to another

            From there we decided to drive a little further to Batil to greet the church there. Well, we arrived to quite the celebration! Not only had a few pastors come from the Mabaan church, but they brought their wives, children and the youth choir! The youth choir sang and danced and I could not hold back my tears of joy as I noticed the church was full to overflowing and neighbors and passersby had stopped to see what was going on. The choir sang in Arabic, the language they share in common, teaching this young church new hymns and choruses. Later we found out the head count was 125 which is incredible since our little Bible study is usually a group of less than 20 men and women.

            

The Mabaan youth choir

 Several got up to speak in front of the church. The leader of the Batil church stood and thanked everyone for coming and for their encouragement. We had also brought a young man who leads the Gendrassa church with us and he got up and gave a brief testimony. My favorite story told was by a man named Barnaba.  Barnaba is actually a Mabaan man but he lives in Yusif Batil camp as a policeman. The new Christians in Batil had originally built a small shade structure for their church in another location about 300 meters away. But right before Christmas some people in the community who were not happy about people turning to Jesus came and destroyed the church structure. This Mabaan policeman, Barnaba, told the new believers they could build a new structure right next to his barracks where he could guard it and keep an eye on it. And so they did. This morning Baranaba shared that he’d walked away from the Lord and hadn’t gone to church for 6 years but Jesus has called him back through this little tiny church plant. He was very instrumental in calling the Mabaan church members out to encourage the Ingassana.

            As I witnessed these two tribes who have been quite hostile towards each other in the last couple of years, worshipping together and expressing their love for one another, I realized that the spark that began with the Ingassana recently is now being fanned into quite the flame! Not only that, but we’re seeing revival in the hearts of these more mature Christians who needed to be reminded of their “first love”, the excitement and joy they had when they first came to Christ.

            Today was a good reminder that God doesn’t need me out there in the camps. He is shining His Truth into peoples’ hearts and using whom He chooses. It gives me such peace that it’s not up to us. God’s got this. And one day we will experience something similar to John in the book of Revelation chapter 7 when we all come to worship our King with every tribe and tongue and nation!

Pastors Andrew and Bulus from Mabaan

New believers joyfully welcomed & thanked everyone for coming to worship with them.

Neighborhood children came to see what was happening at the new church

Praise the Lord that most of the men are literate in Arabic!