What I have been reading lately

With the purchase of my kindle, I have been going back and forth between several books, and now have for you my own little review of what I have been reading. Going in a rough order from most recommended to least. 

Miraculous Movements by Jerry Trousdale- Oh my goodness, I would love for all my supporters to read this book, to get an idea of the ministry strategies our team would like to use, and to see just how much their prayers can affect the Kingdom! It is full of real life stories of people in this area of the world encountering Jesus in  powerful ways. Please stop reading this blog and go buy Miraculous Movements right now! 

Spiritual Survival Handbook for Cross-cultural workers by Robert S. Miller- this little book is full of wisdom on spiritual warfare and staying strong on the mission field. It is written by a missionary to missionaries, and it really challenged me to step up my game when it comes to being dedicated and steady about spending time with God and not just studying the Bible but “lingering with God” as Miller puts it. 

The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler- I really like Matt Chandler’s kind of in-your-face style of teaching and preaching.This book was pretty much what the title indicates; he talks about how the Gospel should be central in every message and action of the church, and goes on to distinguish between the ‘gospel in the air’ and the ‘gospel on the ground’ and then their implications and applications.

Praying God’s Word Day by Day by Beth Moore- this is a wonderful devotional that is a great quote followed by a short prayer made up entirely of scripture based on different themes for each day of the year, so good. 

How and When to be Your Own Doctor by Isabelle Moser- wow, that title is really good. Sounds like it would be great for life in Africa, right? I thought I was so lucky to find it free on Amazon….no  I am being unfair, I haven’t finished it yet, it’s just not what I was expecting/hoping for.  From what I have read so far, it is all about cleansing our bodies of the toxins introduced to them by the gross American diet. So a lot of fasting/colon cleansing/right nutrition kind of talk happening. Which I could be on board with, but I am not in the states anymore, and telling someone to fast when they get sick isn’t what I am going to be doing here in West Africa. 

Dreaming in Black and White by Laura Jensen Walker- I think being in Africa is changing my tastes a little. I used to love these light chick-lit books, but this was just ok. It was fun that the main character was a classic movie fan, and I like old movies too, but the jokes and references were kind of lame, I thought. Plus, I don’t know whether to be amused or annoyed, but the main character said stuff like “Dear God, I’ll go be a missionary in Africa, just don’t make me { insert some task]”  Maybe it’s just that I can’t relate to the character or her problems so much.

Ruth by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell- no, not the one from the Bible. I really like some other stuff from Gaskell, she is kind of Jane Austen/Louisa May Alcott-ish.  But I couldn’t finish this one, I was skipping whole pages (well kindle pages, they are smaller.) Soo wordy! Like a whole page on the way the land looked after  a rainstorm, or something-again it is possible that my tastes are just changing. So yeah, gave up on that one.

Halloween (posted late, but I actually did write it on Halloween)

Happy Halloween! On this day a year ago, I was boarding a plane for France. Today I have since been ten months in France, a month and half in the US, and half a month in Guinea. What a year!  I got to experience so many new and exciting things, and meet so many wonderful people.  In that time I said some tearful goodbyes, learned a good deal of French and formed relationships in France, came home and reconnected with family and friends, said more tearful goodbyes, and now am in the beginning stages of culture learning here in West Africa. 

But of all the cool and glamorous things I got to do this year, I can honestly say my relationships with the people around me are what make my memories so sweet.  Yes the French scenery is amazing; yes, the buildings are old and beautiful; and yes the people here  wear wonderfully colorful clothes- but all the things like that aren’t enough to make me say “that was worth leaving my friends and family and home.” The only thing that makes me say that is getting to share God’s love with the people around me through investing in relationships with them. 

Kingdom work

Hi guys!

 I have met so many amazing people here serving the Lord! It’s like the stuff of legends, but it’s real.  I wanted to share one of the many stories I have heard of God working through his  people to share his love. 

Esther Williams feeds orphan babies here in the capital city and surrounding areas. God has laid this on her heart to help save these babies’ lives, she brings the milk to the caretaker who is unable to purchase milk otherwise. Generally the mother has died and the baby is living with a grandmother or aunt, who simply does not have the money to buy formula.  

Sometimes, it is a combination of poverty and ignorance,the baby in the picture was fed nothing but the medicinal tea for the first month after his mother’s death, it is a miracle he is still alive. Esther has made an exception and taken this baby for a week in order to feed him hourly to get him to gain some weight.  It isn’t that his grandmother didn’t care about him, she was just doing what she thought was best.

 God has laid it on Guineans’ hearts to become involved as well, as was the prayer from the beginning. They are now working on the paperwork to become a recognized NGO, but until then they must raise all their own funds, and the team now has over 230 babies. 

This stuff is the real deal, and I really just wanted let you know about this chance to be a part of saving lives! Please pray for this ministry, pray that God will bring more and more Guineans into the ministry, that this work will be done by Guineans whose hearts are moved by the Spirit of God to work for the Kingdom.

 If you want to contribute to this ministry, you can give online at the PBT website at www.pioneerbible.org   click “give” then “give now” then “projects” then “African orphans” 

 Anyway, hope you guys were blessed by this, keep praying! Love you all!

Shopping

Yesterday we began our shopping orientation. We visited two grocery stores, several roadside stand type places, and two markets. The real experience is at the market: lots of people in a small, covered area, with different animals, both dead and alive! I was totally overwhelmed, but I had expected as much. 

Paying is a new thing too, since there is certain etiquette (right-hand handing, hard for this leftie). Also don’t flash your money around, which is harder than it sounds when 7000 GF is worth 1 dollar, you get a big wad o’ cash fast.

There are expatriate grocery stores, where I have found things I didn’t expect to see in Guinea. But at present we are in the capital, so we won’t have access to these things where we are in the bush, two days away. At these stores some stuff is more expensive than it would be even in the U.S., but generally still cheaper than it would be to have it shipped over, so I imagine I will just pay that much if I want something like chocolate or frozen strawberries or cheese.

When we get home from market we soak our fruits and veggies in bleach water for about 20 minutes before rinsing and drying them.

We didn’t do any bartering yet, which is what we will do in the village. Not gonna lie, I am not looking forward to that, but it will come. 

Today we went downtown in the city, that was a long day! We made lots of stops since that what they do because no one likes to go downtown more than necessary! Traffic/parking is a huge issue, as well as pickpocketing, especially for us white people.

Anyway, those are my experiences so far! Jet lag is getting better, though I still was wide awake for quite a while last night. I am going to try and run regularly while I am here, I don’t know when I will be able to do that next, and lots of people here at the compound run the perimeter fence road, so it is nice and motivating to see a lot of others!

First Impressions

First impressions, it is probably too early to be writing this- but I have a free evening and internet, so viola! I am still going through jet lag, but  I wanted to record what I have experienced so far here.  The trip: it was such a blessing to have traveled with the Brolliers, it made the trip so much less stressful! The Conekry airport was probably the low point for me, and it wasn’t even that low, I was just so tired and it was super hot.The only things I lost were handles off my trunks that must have broken off two of my trunks: not bad at all!

The drive to the guesthouse was quite the introduction to the city, it was about seven and dark out, and that portion of the city didn’t have power (they go by sections and generally you have power in the morning or afternoon, and then alternate the next day) so the only lights are outdoor lights or flashlights and headlights, but it was cool out since the sun went down, so everybody was outside, just hanging out, or crowded around a TV watching a soccer game, or taking advantage of the stopped up traffic, selling apples or something car to car. On the twenty minute or so drive from the guesthouse I asked Pete all manner of questions about the city; the answer to which I probably won’t remember as I was fairly beat!

We were welcomed by all the wonderful PBT colleagues with a dinner, and showers and our rooms. The guesthouse is kind of like a little piece of America in the middle of the city. It has kind of a big family feel as missionaries come and their kids all play together and there is a common kitchen and common living room. 

Today we unpacked, and another PBT family hosted us for lunch, a heavy afternoon storm rolled in and we watched it from the porch, it was amazing how fast the temperature dropped! Then tonight we went to the American church service that a lot of the missionaries working or staying in Conekry attend, and then PBT had a welcome potluck for us, and I met more colleagues. There are two other girls about my age here, one doing a two month accounting internship and one teaching missionary kids for two years.

And that is it for now, thanks for the prayers, keep them up! Tomorrow our orientation begins!