“The best and most difficult decision I made in my life”

Our WR colleagues sent this story. It gives some background to what many people in the villages believe and how their fears rooted in Animism control them. Thankfully Mr. Tivane made the right choice of trusting God.

Boaventura José Tivane, is a 60 year-old man from 25 Setembro/Chibabel Village in the district of Guijá. Mr. Tivane has two wives and seven children. He sustains his family as a farmer. He became a Christian five years ago, however he continued practicing African traditional religion until very recently.

He explains: In 2010 I began to go to church even though my family depended on the counsel of witchdoctors. If we had any disease or perceived some bad luck we ran to a witchdoctor. I am also the eldest son of the family so I was required to lead the religious ceremonies of my siblings if they were advised to do so by their witchdoctors. To maintain the family spirits I was required to build a hut specifically for them where I kept some red and black cloth and some coins to appease them. All the family’s religious ceremonies were held in this hut.

I decided to surrender my life to Jesus as Lord when I observed the lives of two people, including my own daughter. Besides going to church, they started to live devout lives, loving and serving other people in the community. I wanted to be a Christian who really loves people to the point of serving others. In conversation with my daughter I told her that I would change if she would call her friends to pray for me. My daughter attended a WR training in a nearby church. When they came to pray for me, they offered to destroy the hut for the spirits and burn the artifacts if I wanted to dedicate my life fully to God. I accepted, and I think of it as the most difficult and the best decision I made in my whole life.

Indiana Summer

Well, it's been a long time since we paid attention to this blog. Our excuse is that we were taking a break in the U.S. since the end of June.

This included spending fun times with family including three family reunions.

We loved being with the grandbabies! (And our kids, of course ...)

 

One of the reunions was in Tennessee so we spent a little time hiking in the Smoky Mountains. Beautiful!

 

 

 

In between the travels and reunions we did get some work done. For Steve mowing a pasture is fun work. He and his brother also spent time fixing tractors and getting them ready to sell for their Mom. There was also work to do for his parent's estate such as helping to sell properties, cutting down many small trees that were in the wrong place and lots of miscellaneous things on the to-do list. It was great to be able to help her which we haven't been able to do much while we're in Moz.

We also had a good time reconnecting with people from our church and other friends. This is an important part of being home for us.

Labor Day weekend we made our traditional sojourn to Lake Michigan. Bocce ball in progress here.

 

We fit in a baby shower for the next grandbaby coming soon and had fun being creative with the melon. Keith put his artistic talent to work.

 

 

On our way home to Mozambique we stopped in Germany for a weekend to visit missionary friends but that will wait for another entry. We're back remembering how to live here. Steve is OK with driving on the left but he keeps forgetting what side the blinkers are on and so the windshield wipers go on quite regularly!

 

One of my first impressions at the airport was the spontaneity of Africans, laughter, joyful singing. Yeah, and a guy talking so loudly that he interrupted my nap.  But it's good to be back.

 

 

 

 

May Newsletter

Just a note to let you know that our latest newsletter has been posted and you may click on it on the sidebar if you don't already receive it.

Livraria Evangélica

Steve and I have been on the board of a non-profit local CLC Christian bookstore for many years. For most of that time it has been an advisory board which meets 1-2 times a year. Lately, however, I have been getting more involved in the nitty gritty daily affairs.

 

A young man managed the store for a long time and the great thing was that he was very honest. The downside was that he didn’t want to go out to churches, conferences and seminaries to promote the store. After the store moved, many people no longer knew where to find it. The regional director was very frustrated but felt she couldn’t find anyone as honest as him. We know a young lady who loves marketing, is very honest and loves God and suggested her. A year later she came on board.

There was no handover so she is figuring things out as she goes. One of the huge challenges is termites! The wooden shelves are full of them and they are in termite heaven in a bookstore. All that paper, all that wood, yum, yum (and no apologies from them)! Many of the books have been damaged and the shelves are a loss. Used metal shelves are being donated in England and will be put on a container to send here but that will take awhile. In the meantime we need to figure out what to do so that all the books are not eaten before we can sell them.

I have been helping a bit with book tables at community fairs and meetings. It is great to get out and meet people who have been looking for the store, or for a place to buy Christian literature. Please pray for success as it is the only evangelical bookstore ministry in the country (there is also a small branch in Beira).

A Pig in a What and She Bought What?

Life in Africa has been more about travels these last 3 months than about being in one place, which has been Maputo.  We hope that this does not represent a trend that continues for too long into the future.  That said, Steve will be traveling extensively until we go on home leave starting June 20.  After April 7, he will be in Zambia twice, Eastern DRC, Rwanda (just passing through) Kenya and South Sudan.

While our previous blog focused on N. America visits, this one is for Mozambique.  The week after Rachel got back from the US, she went to the village and Steve went to Maxixe to visit the coconut oil factory.  On the way home, I, Steve took a bus that was not too full of people, but was certainly packed with goods.  One of those items was a live pig.  You have probably heard of people transporting live chickens on the bus, where the old lady had one in her basket, or there is a crate of them you have to climb over in the aisle. 

Well this was a pig.  Ok, granted I did not know it was on the bus because they had stowed it down below in a separate compartment.  Its legs were tied and it stayed quiet until they picked it up to toss in onto the side of the road.  You might imagine the pig squeals that the handling and tossing of a trussed up pig can elicit.  Well it certainly got my attention in the middle of Maputo. 

 

Rachel in the meantime, was having her own adventure.  She decided to buy a bunch of bananas from the agriculture association in Mohambe. Ok, I said, no problem.  No, she said, a whole bunch, like the whole thing that hangs on the tree!.  Really? Who is going to eat them since I am traveling next week.  Oh, they are green so it will take them a while to ripen.  Yes, but they will all ripen at once!  Now for the true African, Oh-o-O-o-O! (the 5 syllable, drawn out version meaning “really?”, or “I see, so that is how it is!”)  

The solution was obviously to cut them off the stalk and offer them to our work mates at a reasonable price.  Now Rachel only has about 20 bananas to eat (but they will still all get ripe around the same time).  Bananas, anyone?

 

Rachel here - Actually I was just trying to help my friend Rosalia (below) with some sales. So I brought a crate and a half of tomatoes, and some huge, delicious papayas that you cannot find in the city. Our friends at work would have liked even more produce.

 

 

 

 

 

 

While we're talking about trees and fruit - has anyone ever seen anything like this fruit below?

 I certainly haven't!

 

 



Visit to the U.S. to Meet the New Grandbabies

Last year when we learned that two of our children would have children within a month of each other we decided it would be a good time to use our Delta miles. It was a very special family time and we are grateful that we could go.


On our first stop we met Oliver who was just getting out of the hospital for the second time since birth. He had RSV and was in NICU on oxygen for more than a week. We are so thankful that he is healthy again.

It was great to spend time with Oliver's older sister, Sophia. She loves books, her babies, and she has learned some signs to communicate, such as "more" with a pleading look in her eyes!

 

 

From their house we drove 1.5 hours to our daughter's home. (Isn't it nice that they live close together? It made it very convenient for us.) Joanna was due in about a week but I assumed she would be early since I always was. Wrong. Miss Evelyn decided to wait for another week and a day after her due date. But she came at just the right time and it was a privilege to be with Joanna and Keith during her labor and delivery. Keith did a great job of telling Joanna vivid stories every time she had a contraction to distract her from the pain. The nurses were all talking about this natural birth and how beautiful it was. Evy is an answer to prayer and we thank God for her.

 

 

 

 

 


Before I came back to Moz I visited Janelle and David at their new home which I hadn't seen yet. They live in a winter wonderland on a wooded lot. This year the snowfall record was broken so you know they have had a wild winter! Thankfully it was fairly calm when I was there.

When I landed in Maputo it was a bit of a shock to breathe the warm, humid air. But I've adapted and now the seasons are starting to change as we head toward Fall.

Thank you, God, for a time to be with our growing family at such an important time. Thank you for our two homes and the ability to travel fairly quickly between them and for your provision.

"For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations." Ps. 100:5

Boas Saidas e Boas Entradas

We had a very restful end of the year. Our preference would have been spending it with family but the next best thing was to find some beautiful spots in Mozambique. So we went to the beach!

Our friends Rachel and Natasha joined us for a few days.

After the beach we headed to Swaziland to a lodge on a working farm.

 

 

 

Here is the view off our front porch.



One evening we saw an incredible sunset that lasted for about a half hour.

 

We went for many walks around the farm, usually accompanied by the farm dogs. Unfortunately the ticks found us. Rachel got African tick bite fever a week later but thankfully Steve didn't get it, because he's already had it and is immune to the fever. With the help of some antibiotics and God's healing, Rachel is fine now.

 

After one day at home to catch my breath it was on the road again. This time I accompanied the WR Africa directors to a working retreat. I helped organize the logistics and this bus was a huge answer to prayer when we were down to the wire.

 

It's back to the beach again!
 

The sunrises were awesome!



Of course we spent most of our days inside this room and only got to enjoy the beach on our breaks.



The last evening we had a very meaningful time of communion and hand washing.

On the last day of our retreat we visited the villages where WR works and this church leader's training.
One of these women, Carlota said,

 "We used to think about the life to come but not how to live in this world.

Now we know it's not only important to come to church but how to care for my family. We had to find the African God who cares for us and is stronger than the witchdoctor."

Carlota is conveying the lessons and stories she is learning to five other people in her church.

 

 

We also made a home visit to Rosaria. She was full of rage after her husband abandoned her. After she started attending WR church partners trainings she realized she needed to forgive him. God has done many things for Rosaria. She is now a leader in the agriculture association and in her church. 

The verses Rosaria wanted us to read:
Oh, give thanks to the Lord!
Call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples!
Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;
Talk of all His wondrous works!
Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord!
Seek the Lord and His strength;
Seek His face evermore!
Remember His marvelous works which He has done.
I Chron. 16:8-12a

 

Merry Christmas

Life in Maputo is quickly slowing down as many foreigners head home for the holidays. The end of December and January is like August in Europe. Even the restaurants close! I guess you can't blame them for wanting some time off too. We will be around and are looking forward to some extended beach time with friends.

We have written a December newsletter which you will find on the sidebar at the right of the webpage.

I've been enjoying these pictures taken by my talented brother, Galen.

Have a blessed Christmas and New Year 2014!

Trekking in Chitipa

Last month I traveled to Malawi to visit a World Relief agriculture pilot project.  Rachel and I had been there a couple of times in the past to work with the WR team and look at the agriculture programs with small farmers, but this is a new project with daisy flowers to produce pyrethrum.  This is a natural pesticide that is used in many insect sprays.

I flew into Lilongwe, the capital, but then we had an 8 hour drive north to the district of Chitipa.  Malawi is not a big country comparatively speaking for Africa, but it is long, north to south.  Fortunately, the Chinese have been working on a new road that covers the last 90 kilometers to the provincial capital.  The road used to be so bad, it took 3-4 hours just to travel this distance.  Chitipa is at the end of the road, so for years it seems that nobody cared enough to keep the road repaired.

Day 2 - Our assignment was to look at the seedling nurseries for the daisies being grown by local farmers.  Well, to grow daisies and get good pyrethrum you need altitude and cooler weather which means, up the mountain we went.  We left early enough to beat the heat, or so I thought.

It was a good 30 minutes driving just to the first site.  We took the office manager Joseph with us as he had never been to the ag project sites.  He was in office clothes and street shoes, and so were the other three guys.  We picked up an overweight government agriculture extension agent along the way. 

Our first two sites were near a village so there was easy access.  At the third site, we parked along the edge of a road and hiked over the hill.  “You see the nursery over there?” one of the guys asked.  Hmm, quite a hike and the hillside was pretty steep.  Glad I had my tennis shoes on for that one.  It was challenging. 

(The field where we were headed is circled above.)

To get to the fifth site we drove through some remote territory and parked under a tree.  When we got out, one of the guys asked if I wanted to carry some water with me (it was a hint).  Nah, I thought I was ok.  We started walking and the trails were pretty level, but went on and on.  Then it got steep, going up and then way down.  Where is that nursery?  We have been walking 30 minutes.  It took another 10 minutes to arrive and inspect the nursery.  Our government friend was still with us. 

 

It is mid-day and the sun is hot, now to get back to the vehicle.  Another 40 minutes, climbing and walking on the baked trail, the insoles of my feet could really feel the heat!  I was surprised they were not blistered.  I was surprised the government guy made it.  We had to wait for him, but he survived.  Back at the hotel, there was no power and only a dribble of water, enough to rinse off and cool down a little.

Day 3 - The next morning there is no running water.  It seems that Chitipa is still the end of the road and when power cuts have to be made, those farthest away get cut first.  The development workers can scarcely do reports as there is not enough power to keep the computer batteries charged.  At least there is a bucket of water, but taking a bucket bath in the tiny shower stall is a new challenge. 

Looking at plant nurseries is still the main agenda, but not necessarily the most exciting thing in the world.  After all, they are all growing the same thing! 


Still there is the beauty of the mountains, seeing the unexpected, like a steep road, rough as a staircase and in the distance, the mountains of Tanzania.  Some people are surprised to see us too.  Some give gifts like tomatoes and onions, a bunch of bananas.  Ah, we enjoyed a salad for dinner, where rice and meat are what they normally serve.  Still no running water.

 

 Day 4 – Buckets baths again, but the promise of a shower tonight in Lilongwe.   We say goodbye to the team and hit the road for another 8 hours.  Some beautiful sights along the way, but it is still a long drive.  Back in the capital, the shower is wonderful!

Life in Moz

Instead of writing a lot, I'll post some pictures that will tell the story.

In September I went with a church partner team to a village for a week. One of the things they do is meet with a group of women for Bible studies. These women love to sing and dance. Here they are doing a circle dance. This short clip of Sunday morning singing at a church I visited once will give you a taste of their beautiful singing and dancing.

After the singing and dancing they sit on reed mats on the floor. I cannot sit like this but they do it for long periods of time.

When we walked in the village the kids were like magnets, running to play with the visitors. Scott, pictured here, loved to play, even making angels in the sand.

This is one of the cooks, Odete, in the kitchen. What they deliver from this simple kitchen, cooking over charcoal and wood is yummy!

These three amazing women, Imeldina, Angelica and Isabel work in the village full time. Imeldina and Angelica work with kids' clubs and Isabel works with discipleship groups. Angelica and Isabel leave their families from Monday to Friday to minister in Chaimite.


I also had a great getting to know Amy and Jenn, the only women on this team. As you can see, they enjoy life and we had good times together.

Back on the home front we did some home improvement projects. If you know us, you know we've done plenty of that in our lives. The back porch of this house was turned into a small kitchen but still had the top of one wall with chicken wire which was letting in lots of mosquitoes and other bugs. We decided to sew a tarp on to the wire. So Steve made a needle out of wire and found some string and we were in business. The only problem was that it was 10 ft off the floor in the kitchen and much higher on the other side! I stepped on the top rung of a high ladder and lifted my hands way up to sew the top. Steve was on the other side and ended up sitting on top of the door. We were both glad to be done about an hour later.

We are in the planning stages of building some cupboards, counters and moving the sink to the room that was originally the kitchen but then turned into a bedroom. We'll keep you posted.

This past weekend we had a great time at an AP Seminar. Many people were deeply touched by God and it was exciting to be part of the process. Saturday the temperature was 109 F and wouldn't you know, the power was out most of the day. Thankfully a generator kept the fans and the video going and it was cooler inside than out which was like an oven. God's grace is sufficient for every situation.