Monday, 31 October 2011

Hey There,
 
Kids and I are about ready for our return to the States.  Have got just a bit of last minute packing and a few loose end to tie up and then we'll be ready.
 
It really is with mixed emotions that we are returning.  On the one hand we'll be reunited with family, my family - Janice and the kids.  But, on the other hand, we are leaving (at least for a while) the place where are hearts want to be and where our Call has placed us.
 
We can only trust and wait and listen.  In His time He will make His plans known to us.
 
I will continue blogging while we are in the States so that everyone can be up to date on our family and especially Emma.
 
Thanks for praying.
 
sf

Tuesday, 25 October 2011

Found out today we all will be returning to the States on November 1st.  That is, we will leave Chad on the 1st. and arrive at SEATAC on the 2nd.  A mixture of relief, sadness, and perplexity.  Not sure what the future holds except that we want to be nowhere except in His will.
 
See you.

Monday, 24 October 2011

Hi Y'all,

Hope you and your family are doing well. We are "hanging in there" around here. Despite the fact the Welcome Center has been quite busy we have had relatively quiet days. All of the equipment seems to be running pretty reliably and our guests seem to be reasonably happy and well cared for. So, that's all good.

What's not all good is that the 6 of us that are here will be returning to the States within the next week or two because Emma's situation has not improved. If anything it has become more complicated and it is precisely its complicated nature that has necessitated our return for it is probable that Emma's condition will require at least 4 more months of treatment and investigation before she can be officially declared stabilized. And, without her condition stabilized we cannot go back to Chad. We are confident that a solution can be found which gives her stability and that we will also find a doctor or two in Chad who can continue her care by performing regular examinations of Emma. But, until then, we have decided (along with our Mission) that the best thing to do is to reunite as a family.

So, it's back to the States.

Please pray for Emma. And pray for our family.

Have a great week.

Friday, 14 October 2011

Life is never dull here.  There always seems to be something going on that makes life interesting.  The last few weeks are no exception.
 
In a developing country such as Chad one might expect to encounter shortages of various things like fuel and electricity.  For example, right now we are about 2 weeks into a diesel shortage and over a month into a propane shortage.   Ordinarily you'd think that problems related to amenities such as those would probably have to do with delivery problems because of a poor transportation network or lack of production facilities.  That's not the case in here. 
 
The diesel shortage apparently has its roots in a disagreement between the government and the local refinery.  There's plenty of diesel if only the two parties could agree on a price per liter.  What this means for everybody here is long lines at the gas station and rationing of what diesel we currently have on had.  For now, gas stations will not fill barrels so we have been siphoning diesel from our Land Cruisers and putting it in our barrels.  Hopefully, the diesel will begin to flow more regularly and the pent-up demand will dissipate and we can all get back to normal.
 
The propane shortage is a bit more sticky.  Word on the street is that there's sort of a strike taking place.  The local venders want to charge more for the propane however they are not being allowed to.  So, they've just stopped selling it.  We are lucky.  We've got a decent supply at the Welcome Center.   But, it won't last forever.  Nobody seems to know when propane will be available.  I certainly hope soon!!!
 
Have a great weekend.
 
Steve

Saturday, 8 October 2011

Hey...
 
We are chugging along here in Chad.  Things are pretty stable except that we cannot purchase diesel or propane in town right now.  I do not know when we will be able to purchase either one.  We've heard that perhaps in another week or so we will be able to get diesel.  No word on the propane.
 
We also found out yesterday that Emma will need another 4 months in the States.   So, we don't know what the future holds for our family here or in the States. 
 
Please pray for us as we seek the Lord's wisdom and counsel.
 
Until next time...

Wednesday 5 October 2011

Hey There!
 
Been feeling kinda low the last couple of days.  News from home hasn't been great.  Feel like we're suffering as a family.  Not fun.  But, we can take encouragement from the Word.  From the devitional, Streams in the Desert, we read,
 
The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me" (Ps. 138:8).

There is a Divine mystery in suffering, a strange and supernatural power in it, which has never been fathomed by the human reason. There never has been known great saintliness of soul which did not pass through great suffering. When the suffering soul reaches a calm sweet carelessness, when it can inwardly smile at its own suffering, and does not even ask God to deliver it from suffering, then it has wrought its blessed ministry; then patience has its perfect work; then the crucifixion begins to weave itself into a crown.

It is in this state of the perfection of suffering that the Holy Spirit works many marvelous things in our souls. In such a condition, our whole being lies perfectly still under the hand of God; every faculty of the mind and will and heart are at last subdued; a quietness of eternity settles down into the whole being; the tongue grows still, and has but few words to say; it stops asking God questions; it stops crying, "Why hast thou forsaken me ?"

The imagination stops building air castles, or running off on foolish lines; the reason is tame and gentle; the choices are annihilated; it has no choice in anything but the purpose of God. The affections are weaned from all creatures and all things; it is so dead that nothing can hurt it, nothing can offend it, nothing can hinder it, nothing can get in its way; for, let the circumstances be what they may, it seeks only for God and His will, and it feels assured that God is making everything in the universe, good or bad, past or present, work together for its good.

Oh, the blessedness of being absolutely conquered! of losing our own strength, and wisdom, and plans, and desires, and being where every atom of our nature is like placid Galilee under the omnipotent feet of our Jesus. –

 

The best and only choice is to completely die to Christ so that He is glorified through my life.  So, we will wait and listen and ready ourselves for what He commands us next to do.

 

Pray for us!

 

sf

Saturday, 1 October 2011

Now only 9 days until Jancie and the kids arrive in Chad.  Compared to that event, everything else that is going on here seems to pale in comparison.
 
We had a good week.  The solar panels are now firmly in place and we've enjoyed solar power provided electricity for the past couple of days.  The system appears to be working quite nicely but I'm still not happy with the performance.  Seems like we cannot supply power to the Welcome Center for very long.  Certainly not as long as I'd like or as long as I believed we could.  So, more work remains on getting that situation worked out.
 
It is a happy time around here as two of our employees are getting married this month.  Marriages, and dating for that matter, are different here than in the States.  In both cases, the men live many miles from the fiancées who both actually live in their villages down south (it is an 8 hour plus drive by car) and so they don't see each other very often.  Maybe in a later post I will tell you about the other differences between Chadian culture and American culture as it pertains to dating and marriage ceremonies, etc.
 
For now, have a great day!