December 15, 2012

     We survived our first bout with malaria.  This was my biggest fear, and it turned out to be nothing at all.  Actually, the missionaries here treat malaria a little like the flu.  It can be quite dangerous and even deadly, but if you catch the symptoms early and start treatment right away it’s not usually a big deal.  On Sunday night Nathanael mentioned he had a slight headache.  The next morning the headache had grown worse.  Excruciating headaches are one of the symptoms of malaria, along with a fever and other unpleasant elements.  Nathanael isn’t accustomed to having headaches so we rushed him to the clinic right away.  The clinic administered a blood test and confirmed that he did in fact have a small case of malaria along with some kind of infection.  “This is Africa,” they said with a smile, as if everyone who comes to Africa is bound to catch something.  They then gave us a prescription for a few meds.   

       That night Nathanael progressively grew worse, with a strong fever and strong headaches.  Thankfully he fell asleep early and slept the whole night.  The next morning he was still a little weak and suffered some small vomiting due to the medicine, but by lunch time he was right as rain.  On the third day we finished the treatment and sent him back to school.  As I said, most missionaries here treat this as if it were the flu.  There’s not much you can do to avoid getting it (there are medicines you can take, but they are often accompanied by strong side effects like depression, strange dreams, etc… and are not recommended for long term use) and if you treat it early it goes away pretty fast.  We were very thankful to have caught this right at the beginning and that it was truly a mild case.  Once again the Lord has been good to us, protecting us and pouring out his favor upon us.  Praise the Lord!

     This past week was also spirit week at school.  The kids wanted to do a fun dress up week, so we picked the before-last week of school (often the hardest to get through).  Each day the kids had something to look forward to as we followed CCA inspired themes.  Monday was Mismatch Day; Tuesday, Twin Day; World Wednesday (international outfits); Superhero Thursday; and Funny Friday.  There were some pretty interesting outfits especially on Thursday and Friday, and I’m sure our neighbors thought we had gone nuts.  But it helped us get through the week, and our kids had a blast.

     This Friday I also went out to the market and finished my Christmas shopping.  This time my shopping list was for our neighbors and house helpers.  I was truly experiencing the biblical principle “it is more blessed to give than to receive,” as I planned and bought and anticipated the reactions of the recipients about to receive these gifts.  It’s even more fun because I know they don’t expect them at all.  Since this isn’t a normal holiday for them, and since gift giving isn’t part of their traditions, I know the gifts will come as a total surprise.  We hope and pray it will communicate the love of Jesus and will give us an opportunity to share about Jesus with them.  Whatever the results, I am excited to be able to give them.

     Today Andres and I did our second training of children’s ministry leaders.  This one was for the church in Kamsar.  Though I have only visited this church once before, I was truly impressed by this little congregation.  They are a small group of believers, maybe 50 in attendance, that meet in a local school classroom (think wooden benches and an old school blackboard).  The joy in their singing and worship is absolutely infectious. The pastor and his wife are a young couple, who were both raised in “pagan families,” as they expressed it.  Yet they both came to the Lord and felt the call to serve Him in ministry.  They now live in a very humble neighborhood surrounded by small, family-owned crops, and raw sewage running through their backyard.  Pastor Joseph is an incredibly sharp man with an absolute passion to help his congregation grow spiritually.  I believe he and his wife have two children, but the neighborhood kids are constantly surrounding their house so it’s hard to tell. 

     Last time we visited, they invited us into their home and fed us lunch.  This time we were also in their home as the room they usually use for church was being occupied by the school.  Six members were in attendance, including the pastor and his wife.  Though the group was small, my impression from the pastor was that he was soaking up everything he could receive, and was ready to pass it on to others.  He told us he feels strongly that he and the elders need to be part of each “movement” (youth, kids, women, choir, etc…) to support, encourage, supervise, and pray for them so they can be as effective as possible.  He’s making it a point to do everything he can to motivate and train up leaders in the church to take on the ministry, to reach more people.  I felt blessed to be able to support him in his vision and calling. 

     And now we’re just a few days away from the end of the first semester.  On Wednesday we’ll have a special Christmas presentation with the kids and parents of our little school.  Afterwards we’ll do a simple gift exchange and lunch.  Then on Thursday we head off to the Guinean mountains for some R&R, and assuredly some fresh, cool, mountain air. 

     We wish all of our friends and family members a Merry Christmas.  We miss you and look forward to seeing you in 2013.

Merry Christmas!  And Happy New Year!