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Saturday, February 27, 2010

Village Of Dara

As every Saturday morning, Paul went to the village of Dara where we planted a church a year and a half ago, and where he is the pastor. Last week I forgot to tell you about the words of knowledge Paul had, and people responded to them, and they were healed.

Today God gave him a dream during the night that they would find a lady whose one side of the body would be paralyzed, and they'd pray for her and she'd be healed. After their meeting, they went to see that lady who had been unable to come to the meeting, and it was her. They prayed for her, and she was healed. Praise God!

As always they started the meeting with a time of Bambara praise. This one old lady is always the first one to start dancing - amazing, and then others join her.

Paul preached, and then they prayed for the sick. I encouraged Paul to take our little kids with him as well, and thanks to Eva being there and watching them, that worked out nicely. Paul even had Bakary (6) and Sarata (4) pray for the sick as well! Wonderful!

These two pictures show two of my older boys praying for the sick - Joseph (left, 16) and Souleymane (right, 15). I love seeing this! They did great.

After visiting the sick lady, they returned to Bamako. I love this picture of these old ladies that Eva took! The village imam passed by the meeting and was asked by one of them where he was going. He said to his field. She answered, we're working in His field here.

Israel Service

The quiet morning enabled me to prepare for the service in the afternoon - though it wasn't that quiet. Anco finally came to install another machine to make our solar power system run more smoothly, so I was really happy about that. Unfortunately we're having some major problem with the system, having far less electricity than we should have, which has made life hard. Anco didn't find anything during the short time he was here, but will be back to look at it.

With it being the Feast of Purim tonight and tomorrow, I decided to preach on the book of Esther and have us pray for Israel. As we prepared the dining hall for the service, there was the usual disorder and chaos and kids' inability to each do their tasks. But it seemed worse than usual. A few times I was at the point of letting them do the service without me. Looking back now, I believe the enemy wanted just that for today.... but I decided to look to God and do the service for HIM, whatever the kids are up to.

My nice computer then died... the screen is already broken, so we've used it for the projection. The fan is not working, so it won't turn on. Does anyone know whether that's easy to fix?

So we didn't have any words up on the screen. Paul led Bambara praise first, and then I led French worship. After the offering, it was my turn. Even the worship time had been pretty discouraging, and I still felt like just walking away. But I didn't.

I preached on the book of Esther, drew lessons for ourselves, and talked about modern day Israel and today's threats to its existence. I preached my usual long time of 1 hour ;-). Paul was getting really tired.

I felt we needed to end the service with prayer for Israel. So I asked someone to come forward and pray for Israel first. Philippe came and did (see picture). Then I asked for someon to pray for Iran and the threat coming for there, and Paul did. The third and last item was to pray for Mali's relationship with Israel. My heart was already broken, and I was on the brink of tears. I asked who wanted to pray for that, but I knew it was my turn.

And so I knelt down on the floor, and let the tears flow. Suddenly the microphone had so much electricity flowing through it that I had to drop it. I tried a few times, and the street kids were laughing hard. The enemy tried one more time to keep from happening what God had planned. I asked them stop laughing and let God break their hearts as well. I took the edge of my clothes to hold the microphone, and started praying. I repented on behalf of Mali, asking God's forgiveness for us turning against Israel, and asked for God to intervene so we would be counted a friend of His people in the last days. I paused a few times as the tears flowed, and expected others to fall on the floor as God was breaking their hearts. Paul was already next to me. But no one else followed. Philippe's heart was very touched, as was Joseph's. But that was it. Their hearts were too hard. We later talked and agreed that God had wanted to break in and do much more.

I finally got off the floor and had us do one last thing. We all stretched our hands towards Israel, and they repeated a blessing over them after me.

Since the projector was already up, we hooked up a DVD player and then showed them the ESTHER film - to all those who stayed.

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Friday, February 26, 2010

This Week's Pictures

More pictures from this week. Like Paul who is teaching the street kids every morning, holding his Bible in his hand.

And Hama who is using his walker again a little bit every day inside the dining hall. He's praticing with his crutches, which will help him more on the uneven ground.

A rare picture of Jonathan (1.5) smiling. And one of Abdias making the traditional Malian tea.

The kids are allowed to play with the Playstation one hour per day - soccer of course. In this picture the older ones are playing with it, and the younger ones are playing Memory with Eva and Philippe.

The other picture shows Eva with the three little ones that go to the Christian kindergarten being picked up at noon.

Eva accompanied Hama to the handicapped kids' center where he goes once a week. I was disappointed to hear that they only worked with him for one hour. That's not much. Thankfully Eva and one of my boys work with Hama every day.

Thursday night we spent some time playing Monopoly together, since there was no school on Friday. The other two pictures show me with our 4-year-old Sarata.

This is our dog Uppy the day before she had her puppies. And the other two pictures were taken the following day - the day the puppies were born; 8 of them. Now we need to find people to take them. "Fortunately" 3 are already dead as Uppy doesn't seem to care for them, and lets them go hungry. Maybe the problem will take care of itself.

On Thursday we have our weekly prayer meeting which is more a worship meeting most of the time. I led us in a time of French worship. In the end we share visions and words God has given us.

This picture shows you my cat sprawled out because of the heat. Most of the times she's looking for a cool spot in the kitchen on the tiles. The other one is Souleymane who chose to brush his teeth outside as someone else was in our only bathroom.

And finally, our night guard Dami at our main gate. And Jonathan and Hama sleeping outside because of the heat.

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Tuesday, February 23, 2010

More Daily Life Pictures

The older kids play with Lego, the younger with Duplo. I'm glad to see that this generation of kids loves it so much. The first kids I took in were older and couldn't get anything out of Lego. These kids get to have their creativity encouraged, and are building houses and all kinds of things. Wonderful!

Now that Eva is here, she's the one working with Hama together with Joseph. Every day they practice walking with the canes, Hama practices using his left hand, and doing some intellectual stuff. It's only on Thursdays that Hama gets to go to the school for handicapped children where they work with him.

Every morning, after our kids are off to school, Paul does a time of praise & worship and Bible teaching with the street children. Right now their number is pretty low, only around 20 per night.

This picture shows our female goat Fifine - or I should say MY goat since it was a gift for me. We want to buy a male one to have little goats.

Right now our dog is pregnant again (sigh) because they are unable to keep our gates shut, and so she gets out. It also means that strangers get in without anyone noticing, which is not good.

Today Eva did a tour of the hills to our north. She found a great view up there. You can see her sitting on a rock, with our base in the background - the white houses and water tower. She also found a place where there was water, and hence the green plants. In rainy season kids love bathing there.

On her way back she passed by Dami & Rosalie's house. They live just around the corner. Rosalie is one of our cooks, and Dami our night guard.

Every day our kids learn a Bible verse. They have learned 1.Cor 13 by heart, and this week they are working on Psalm 91. Eva is helping our little ones memorize the verse of the day - 6-year-old Bakary and 4-year-old Sarata.

Every night at 8 pm we have our family meeting (picture on the right). We talk about the day - the good and the bad, look at who did their chores, see whether they have memorized their verse of the day, and then I pray for them laying hands on each one of them. The little ones have to be ready for bed already, the older ones hit the bathroom afterwards. It's a precious time for our family.

Right after the family meeting, we have a team meeting. The six of us sit down and exchange, and then pray together. Around 9 pm we all go our different ways - Dami to start his shift as our night guard, Paul and Philippe to bed (in the best case), and I to the office.

Last night the power went out at 10:30 pm already. Knowing it would be possible to sleep inside the house, I joined Eva on the roof. I was shocked that even outside it was 33°C (91.4 F) until 1 am or so - that's how long we talked instead of sleeping. By the time I got up and went inside the house at 6 am, it had cooled down to 27°C (80.6 F).

Tonight, I won't touch the AC so that the power stays on until the morning. But it's not going to be easy to sleep in the hot house. The heat is definitely takings its toll on me.

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Monday, February 22, 2010

Rioting In Bamako

The power went out at 4 am - that's when the night was over. It came back on at 8 am. I was good for nothing all day, being very tired, and having a hard time with the heat. It's not even March yet, and it's hot as if it was the middle of hot season! Amazing.

In the late afternoon we heard of rioting going on all over our city. A public transportation driver was shot by a policeman because he didn't want to show him his vehicle papers. So all the public drivers plus taxi driver decided to rise up together and attack all the police stations. The police abandoned their stations, and attacked with tear gas. The drivers set up barricades, and lit tires in the middle of the roads.

One of our boys was out there at that time - our 19-year-old who had gone to driving school to pay the second installment. He was going to stay there to go straight on to school; he's going to evening school which is from 7 to 9 pm every night. Our driver barely made it home with our boys who finish school at 5 pm. He said there were fires at the nearby police station. All public transportation including taxis were on strike.

Thankfully Tierno made it home safely. He said he started to run when he saw the tear gas. We're praying and hoping this situation won't stay like this for long.

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Sunday, February 21, 2010

This Past Week

This week is already over; it's been a very busy week, but a good week. We implemented our new schedule on Monday, and it's worked well. I'm sure more busy than before, though, but I'm loving it. The heat has not made things easier, unfortunately.

Eva has now been with us for a week, and it feels like she's been here so much longer already. She's a great blessing, a wonderful addition to the team, and her presence has already made a big difference. I'm so glad she's watching the kids all day, and helping them do what they're supposed to do - and all that without speaking the same language!

She's also a great photographer, and thanks to her I'll undoubtingly have great pictures in the weeks and months to come. Below are some pictures from this week.

Hama - 8-year-old handicapped boy who can't walk - and his little brother Jonathan (1.5), plus our dog Uppy.

Hama's Mom Fanta is washing clothes.

Hama (left) and Bakary (right) are playing with Duplo.

The little ones coloring using coloring books - Patrice, Sarata, Bakary, and Hama.

Time for homework! Every day the kids work between 45 and 90 minutes for school.

After one year without a Playstation, I bought a used one. They're allowed to play one hour a day, and they're loving it.

In the picture to the right, you see Paul Junior with the little ones - from left: Paul, Bakary, Jonathan, Hama, Sarata. Paul Jr. has been on probation, having to sleep with the street kids but continuing school, but on Saturday we finally had to kick him out. He refused to live by the rules, do his part, and show any respect. While he was quiet, he was also short-tempered and violent. We hope that he continues to spend the nights here, since God has a future for him.

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Saturday, February 20, 2010

Village of Dara

Since our driver wanted a day off, we moved our weekly visit to the village of Dara from Sunday to Saturday. Paul is the pastor in Dara, and since I preach at our church in Bamako in the afternoon, that works out fine. It's a lot for Paul, though, if he has to do both services.

I was happy to have a quiet morning to prepare for the service in the afternoon, while Paul and the kids and our new family member Eva from Austria drove to Dara, which is 45 minutes away (by car). It was her first chance to get out of Bamako. A few days ago we went to the supermarket, but that's all she had seen so far. So it was an exciting opportunity for her.

They started off praising God to let people know they were there, so they could gather. Their usual place where they meet was too small, so they had to move to a bigger place. There are now about 60 adults in that little village church.

Our new driver gave a testimony after the time of praise. Then Paul preached a message. You see Paul reading the Bible in this picture.

Then they prayed for the sick, and many were healed. They returned home excited.

Church Service

Paul has been preaching on Saturday afternoon as well, and today was my first time in quite a while. I didn't even know what to preach, but decided on passing on what the prophets are saying regarding 2010.

But before the service, it was time for a new family picture.

Standing from left: Claudia, Paul, Philippe, Tierno, Eva, Joseph, Abdias, Souleymane, Fanta
Sitting from left: Florentin, Jérémie, Boubacar, Amadou, Sarata, Hama, Bakary, Jonathan

I was surprised at how few people showed up. Paul led a time of Bambara praise to start with. Then I led worship in French. It was the first service with me for both Philippe and Eva. Abdias took care that the right words were projected onto the wall.

I want to give my kids more opportunities to step out, and so I had asked Souleymane to speak a few minutes for the offering. He did a great job.

Then it was my turn to preach. I wasn't happy with what I had prepared, but was surprised (as so often) to see Holy Spirit "hijacking" me and bringing forth a wonderful sermon that inspired and encouraged the people. I'm so glad he doesn't depend on me...

Philippe thanked me later for the message, and Paul always loves it when I preach. Unfortunately Eva doesn't understand either French or Bambara.

I prayed at the end of the service, challenging people to stand up if they wanted to respond to God, and then the service was over. The kids had behaved decently well.

After the service, Philippe took back the one family to our old neighborhood, while we did not put away the sound system, projector and computer. It was time for a movie! Many street kids had already shown up to the service, and now they got to watch the Christian movie FACING THE GIANTS. We showed them with English subtitles, so Eva could also understand what's going on.

One more picture - this is one with all our three ladies who cook for us (at different times): Rosalie, Elisabeth and Fanta.

It had been a long day, but a great day. Since tomorrow is a day off, we allowed the kids to stay up for an additional hour, which they appreciated.

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Monday, February 15, 2010

Nocturnal Adventures

Eva was scheduled to arrive in Bamako at 1:30 am this morning - with a North African airline I did not even know did fly to Mali. We were all excited about her arrival - especially little handicapped Hama.

Paul went to bed after the family meeting, while I stayed up. I've been trying to go to bed early to get over jetlag - well that night would counteract those efforts. I had no problem staying up till 1 am. When I called the airport, I was surprised that their arrival time was still not confirmed, and they didn't know anything. Still, I woke up Paul and at 1:15 am we left home to drive to the airport - not more than 15 minutes away. Paul was very tired - he's a morning person, while I'm an evening person. So he had a hard time functioning.

We parked at the airport, and went inside the hall to look at the screen with the arrival times. While other flights had their projected arrival times, there was nothing on Eva's flight. It was now past the projected arrival time, and no one knew anything about the flight. That was really weird!

We were wondering what to do. Had the flight even left Tunisia? What if she'd arrive many hours later? We sat down to wait a little. Paul was so tired he was in no shape to think or make decisions. 2 am came around, and still no word on the flight. I did not want to spend the whole night at the airport, and Paul had errands to run in the morning. So I decided we'd go home. Our night guard could call the airport regularly until they'd know the arrival time.

We got back home before 2:30, and tried calling them one last time before going to bed. And - surprise, surprise - they had a confirmed time! It was 3:25 am, just an hour away. Paul went to bed, while I sat down in my office. I had to keep myself awake somehow. The heat's been really getting to me, since it's 34°C in my office during the day (i.e. 93.2 F), and it wasn't much cooler at night. I thought watching 24 should keep me awake, but I still had a hard time.

At 3:15 I woke up Paul, and we left for our second time for the airport. Our smaller car is being repaired right now, and I was driving our bigger and older car, and it was also in pretty bad shape; the driver had already told me so. When the small car comes back, the big one will go to the shop... so many expenses to repair those old cars (sigh).

We parked at the airport, and went to wait for Eva. I saw how tired Paul was, and told him to go lie down in the car which he did. I continued waiting by myself. At 4 am Eva came out, and we were happy to see each other.

This is what happened: For some reason we don't know, her plane did not go from Tunisia to Bamako, but to Abidjan (Ivory Coast). That means, it passed over Bamako and went further south. Since she didn't know she had NOT arrived in Bamako, she got off the plane and started the process of leaving the airport. It was at immigration that she was told she did not have a visa for Ivory Coast and she finally figured out she was not in Mali! She was rushed back to the plane, and got back on before it left. Thank God!

So it must have been this unexpected stop why nobody knew when this plane would arrive or what is going on.

Well, we were finally on our way home - with Eva and her luggage. Paul was sleeping in the back, and we were talking. At 4 am, there are few cars on the road, and there is some weird stuff going on. There was a huge truck that had fallen over, and then suddenly this pick-up truck pulled up in the middle of the road, nearly blocking us. It had a motorcycle in the back. I was able to get by and continued on my way.

Suddenly the truck came back, overtook us dangerously, turned on all the lights, slowed down, which made me try to get by on the right, but I couldn't. The car stopped and policemen came out. I was surprised, and wondered what was going on. The one officer made me pull to the side of the road, leave the engine on, and have me get off. I was puzzled, but obeyed. He asked me to come towards him, and he showed me that my left light was not working. I told him I had not noticed.

Then Paul joined us. I don't know why, but I then turned on the distance light, and that one worked, and it looked like everything was fine now. To my great surprise that satisfied the police officer, and he told us to go on our way. What a first adventure for Eva!

I was glad when we arrived home before 4:30 am. Since Paul had to get up at 5:30, we decided we'd let Eva sleep in his room, and Paul would sleep in the living room. That way Eva would have some quiet and be able to sleep as long as she wants to. Eva's room is right next to the kids', plus she has no window, so it would not have worked.

I showed Eva the most important stuff, and by 5 am I was in bed.

Eva's First Day

It was 11:30 am when I got up. I felt like a truck had run me over. I'm definitely not 20 any more! Eva did amazingly well all day today!

I found her with the little kids in the living room, having fun. Sarata is the next to have gotten sick, so she wasn't in kindergarten today.

Though it was Eva's first day, she already got involved quite a bit, and did great. It's a lot to take in, of course, all those names to learn. She has a Bambara dictionary, and will have to let the kids teach her, since she knows neither Bambara nor French. I hope that won't get frustrating for her. It can be hard not to understand the language of the country you're in.

Today we implemented our new daily schedule, and it went well. The kids did their Bible reading/listening plus audio explication in the morning, and in the afternoon we had time set aside for homework/schoolwork and that proved very beneficial.

The greatest moment for my kids was when I gave them their remaining Christmas gift I had tried to get here for the last 5 months - a Playstation 2. Their old one stopped working early last year. They were literally jumping in the air when they saw it! They can play one hour a day, and made good use of it today! What was the first game? Soccer, of course.

Nightly Meetings

Every night we have a family meeting with our children. We had a good time tonight. But then, we did something new:

We had a team member meeting! We were 6 people gathering in my living room, as the kids went to bed. There was Eva and Paul, then our driver, Fanta, and our night guard. I explained to them that I wanted time just with the team to talk about things and pray together; just a few minutes each night. Vroni, you should be happy! :-)

So we did just that, and it was great! It should make a big difference!

I talked with Eva for some time before she went to bed, and I went to the office to get some more things done. How on earth am I going to fall asleep at a decent time tonight! It's midnight now, and I'm going to give it a try.

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Saturday, February 13, 2010

Grace, Grace

Well, it's been an intense few hours of dealing with situations. I've had conversations with different people.

Paul Junior - Things are back to going bad with him... been there, done that. We might not have another option than to kick him out.

Philippe - our new driver - talked to me about getting a day per week off. He also wants to go other churches as well as he feels like he's not being fed here. I can't blame him. I reminded him that he came 3 days before I left for the US, and now I've been sick since my return. He has not been in a prayer meeting with me, nor heard me preach. Next week things will be back to "normal" again.

I also explained to him that we had put some things on ice because Paul and I are already stretched to the limit, and we are concentrating on the children now. Paul told me that Philippe was part of several weekly prayer meetings, since he was without a job and had time, and he misses that now.

I asked Philippe to give it a little more time and be patient. I told him we'd rearrange things so we could make it one day a week without a driver. I told him that being part of two churches might become a conflict of interest at one point... he wants to go to another church Sunday, since our service is on Saturday. Talking with Paul about it, I told Paul that I can trust God with that, that at the right time Philippe will choose, and make the right decision. He told Paul that he's not comfortable in our service; he's now been in 4 services with Paul preaching each time, and he's a fiery preacher. Philippe is from non-charismatic background.

So, please pray for him and for us. Going to the village and having our service the same day is more tiring for Paul primarily; especially if I'm traveling and he has to preach in both services. I'd like to see both Philippe and the kids step up to the plate more.

I told Philippe about our Bible school, and that I'd wish it would start up again. Honestly, at this point I don't even see where we could put that in our schedule! But it would be really good for Philippe, and some of our older boys, and other team members.

So that's some of the issues I've been dealing with.

More kids still get sick, so that quite a few are suffering right now. I don't think we've ever had that many sick at the same time!

I have tried to rest some so I'll be back up to speed by the time our new member of the family arrives from Austria tomorrow night. This afternoon I spent some time playing with the kids, and I did feel that physically later.

Yesterday, my most productive time mentally was from midnight to 2 am! I simply could not fall asleep. My mind was so active, finding solutions, being creative, to the point I needed a paper to write things down. Once again, it took me forever to fall asleep. So I set my alarm to go off early this morning... the only way to get over this jetlag. I'm tired tonight, so I hope I'll fall asleep more easily.

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Thursday, February 11, 2010

One Sick Family

Well, I've been pretty miserable since arriving late night the day before yesterday. It started on the plane, and by now my nose is all red and in pain. I've barely moved around today, though I really want to get on the treadmill. However, I still got lots of necessary work done.

I'm not the only one sick. Tierno went to get tested while I was gone, but was too scared to follow up when they told him to go to the hospital. I convinced him to go today; he was given medication but has more tests to undergo.

I'm also concerned for Abdias; he says that he's turned blind on one eye. He went to the eye center today. He also has more tests to undergo to figure out what's wrong.

Finally, Paul also has a cold, as has Souleymane, and today I was told that Hama has joined the club. Please pray for us!

Reunion

It was wonderful to see my kids again yesterday - sick or not. I decided I wanted to be with them, however miserable I felt. It was great to be able to hold them in my arms again.

I gave them the lego and duplo pieces I had brought from my trip, and soon they were enthralled in playing. I love seeing these kids be creative - something that is not encouraged in this culture.

The family meeting at night was less encouraging. I found out that they had not done their chores nor memorized their Bible verses during my absence. It's time to have a more scheduled day again, the way we did in the beginning! Once Eva arrives Monday morning, we'll be able to carry through with that since she'll be supervising. It will be the beginning of a new chapter!

But it's not Monday yet; today I felt more miserable than yesterday, and it bothers me that I can't be more productive, especially just having come back. I told Paul he might be the one preaching on Saturday; we'll see.

This cold plus jetlag has also made the first two nights less than profitable; I hope tonight will be better.

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Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Paris To Bamako

We landed in Paris at noon local time; it had been a very short night. It took a while, including a train, to make my way to where my plane would leave from, and I had to go through security once again. Then I headed straight for the frequent flyer lounge. I found a nice spot, and got some tea and internet for my computer. I would have over 2 hours of waiting time here.

Halfway through that time the tiredness caught up with me. At 3:20 pm I left the lounge to go to my gate. At the gate, they kept delaying the boarding; we ended up leaving with a delay of nearly one hour. For once it didn't matter!

I enjoyed the 5.5 hour flight with my last good meal and movies, and was glad not to have anyone sitting next to me even though the plane was pretty full. It was chilly, but I knew I was freezing for the last time in quite some time.

We landed at 9:20 pm local time. I got through immigration quickly, and waited for my luggage. This time I decided to have my own cart and not take a porter - nobody ever even asked me whether he can help me, which is shocking. I was glad when my two bags came out quickly, then heaved them onto the x-ray machine, and was not stopped by customs. Thank God! Everything had gone extremely smoothly!

I walked outside, where Paul and Philippe came up to me right away. Half an hour later we were home, where our dog Uppy welcomed me the most enthusiastically, as always. It was late, and the kids were asleep, and Paul and Philippe went to bed, with only our night guard up and working.

I decided not to unpack - usually I do - but checked emails and soon headed to bed. I had started noticing a sore throat on the plane, and it was getting worse. That plus the time differenc plus my cat kept me from falling asleep for a while. I was glad that my cat had not turned into my enemy as she does most of the time, but she was not super-friendly either. I finally did fall asleep.

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Monday, February 8, 2010

Leaving For Mali

This morning I woke up in tears, having dreamed that I was reading notes my spiritual Mom Jill Austin had made about me, and I was grieving over having lost her, being in tears. I woke up with that grief; being in the US - especially in Pasadena - so reminds me of Jill, and I miss her.

I woke up half an hour earlier than planned, but that was okay. I went to have my last good American bagel-breakfast, and then finished packing. At 10 pm someone from Bible Pathway picked me up.

I had one hour at their offices, telling more about Mali. It was a good time. I returned to the hotel at 11:30 am, through the side door, not knowing that my friends were already in the lobby to pick me up. 15 minutes later we figured that out.

They were so kind to stop at the bank, and then we continued on to a very special place - Hotel Opryland. It's the most amazing hotel I've ever seen! Huge indoors gardens that look like outdoors, with little streets that could be in Europe. It was beautiful! It was hard to find an affordable restaurant though and so we left to go to my favorite restaurant - Applebee's. I enjoyed my favorite dish, and spending time with my friends.

Then they dropped me off at the airport, and it was time to say good-bye. I checked in, and went to security. I had forgotten to move my little locks from my bag to the suitcase, and so I got pulled aside. Oh well. I had plenty of time.

From security I made my way to the Delta lounge, where I'm enjoying free tea and internet right now.

Please pray for an uneventful, smooth trip to New York, then on to Paris, and then on to Bamako. The greatest prayer request is customs upon arrival in Mali.

Thanks for your prayers, and more from me from Paris!

JFK Impressions

I was surprised at how empty the little Delta connection plane to New York was - definitely the emptiest plane I've been on in a long time. The trip was about 2.5 hours long. As soon as I sat down, I was gone; I was so exhausted. When she came with drinks and peanuts, I came back to the land of the living, and read a book and just reflected on things for the rest of the journey.

I loved looking down at the lights of New York; one day I will visit this city! It was my very first time arriving at JFK airport.

I arrived at Terminal 1 at 9:30 pm, and everything was pretty much deserted. It was totally unclear where I was supposed to go to get my connection. Thankfully I knew from my boarding pass that I was leaving from Terminal 3. So I asked a few security people who were sitting around. I could hardly believe it when they told me I had to leave the airport building, and walk outside over to the next building.

And I did - walk by the check-in and leave the airport, walking on a tiny sidewalk over to the next building. Shocking - and cold. I entered that other building, and was in the arrival area. Now I had to make my way to departures, and found the security checkpoint. I made my way through security, and wondered whether there was a frequent flyer lounge. I asked a few employees, and they were pretty unfriendly. I finally found it - and it was closed. Great; I had another hour before boarding.

I sat down at my gate and made a few phone calls before leaving the country; I'm glad I did.

When they called a few names to come to the gate, I rejoiced since that means you get an upgrade. Well, not this time. They just wanted to check my passport :-(. And when we boarded, they checked it again.

I was sitting further back than usual, but was glad that there was no person in the middle of the three seats; I sat at the window. I watched a movie, had dinner at 1 am, and when I got too tired around 3 am, I decided to nap a little. It didn't last very long, as the flight is less than 7 hours, and they wake you up with a small breakfast a while before landing.

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Sunday, February 7, 2010

Sunday Morning Sharing

I had a hard time getting up this morning, having gone to bed late and having had a hard time falling asleep. I set my alarm for 9 am, not knowing when Karen would pick me up. I had a voicemail saying she'd be here at 9:30 am - not much time. I quickly went to have breakfast and got ready. I was ready before she showed up.

Karen had dropped her brother off at the airport, and our next stop was her home. She got her stuff done, and we continued on to her little country church. The building is 200 years old; the church used to be Baptist and is now unaffiliated. They have Sunday school from 10 to 11, and service from 11 to 12. We walked in while they had Sunday school.

When they were done, I was introduced to the pastor. We tried to get my video presentation to work, but the player would not play it. I then set up my stuff on a table right in the open area.

It was a 1-hour service. We sang two hymns about God, they shared prayer requests and prayed a prayer for all those people. The pastor gave a 2-min sermon to the chidlren, and there was an offering.

Karen introduced me in a very moving way. Then it was my turn, and I had about 20 minutes to complete the hour. I had no pictures to show, but just started sharing about what God is doing in Mali, and it really flowed very well this morning. I was very happy with the way the words came out, and the time frame was perfect to get everything said.

After I was done, the pastor invited the congregation to surround me, and a few people prayed for me. That was the end of the service. People then took my materials, and talked to me, and left checks. Everyone was very friendly.

I packed up the stuff, and we moved to the fellowship hall nextdoors, where everyone was already eating. Once a month they all stay to eat soup and sandwiches. Some of the food I saw looked unfamiliar to me, but it was good. I had a chance to talk a little more with people, but most left after they were done eating. Karen and I left after 1 pm ourselves.

My Last Few Activities

We returned to Karen's house, and from there went straight to the movie theater. I had heard of the movie AVATAR, and that it was 3D, and had already become the most successful movie ever, and I was curious - especially after other people speaking highly of the movie. I was glad that Karen was willing to go watch it with me.

There were few people in the movie theater, and we had great seats. The movie was sure long, but definitely fascinating. I love technology, and loved the effects, and the fantasy world they've created. I was less excited about the story plot, and the new agey parts. All in all, it was definitely worth watching - and watching in 3D, rather than on a plane half a year from now.

I got back home around 5:30 pm, ready to pack for my return to Mali. Or somewhat ready. I had been very tired all day, and knew it wouldn't be easy. When you have that much stuff to take, it's a major undertaking to pack wisely in a way Malian customs won't give me any trouble, and with the weight being okay. I made good progress, and enjoyed TV and internet at the same time.

And so time passed quickly, and it's after midnight now. Time to go sleep one last time in the US!

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Saturday, February 6, 2010

Small Mali Meeting

I could finally sleep in - unfortunately I didn't realize I would have had another hour to go to breakfast since it was the weekend, and didn't have to set my alarm. I had gone to bed too late, as usual.

I enjoyed the treadmill in the morning, and had some of the groceries I had bought at Walmart for lunch. At 2 pm Karen came to pick me up. I still had a shopping list for Walmart, for stuff to take to Mali, and she was so kind to take me there. I pretty much got everything and more, which was exciting. I got more lego and duplo for my kids; it's been a joy to see them play with that every day, and they sure needed some additions. They had asked me for some female people to add, but Walmart was limited. So we stopped at Toys R Us, and they were out. But I got a little set where there was at least one lady in there. I can't wait to give them their gifts!

After the shopping was done, Karen drove me to her house that is out in the countryside a little bit. We picked up her brother and the lasagna, and left again to drive to the church that allowed us to use their gym for tonight's meeting.

The ladies had already set up the tables, and as people arrived, they brought the food - Italian was the theme. I had not had lasagna and pizza yet, and was looking forward to reverting to that unhealthy food for just one night ;-).

We sat down to eat first, and I talked a little with some people. Some people that had come had already been to other meetings. But tonight we had 3 hours - enough time to tell the whole story.

There was only a very small group of people - two tables with about 10 people. I had my laptop with me and showed them the presentation to start with. Then I told them the whole story of how I ended up in Mali. Then they had questions, and Karen encouraged me to share certain specific things. We had a great time.

The 3 hours had passed quickly, and it was 8 pm and time to say good-bye. People picked up my brochures and DVDs and signed up for the email newsletter. We packed up, cleaned up, and left.

Karen dropped me off at home, where I enjoyed the rest of the evening, and went to bed too late once again.

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Friday, February 5, 2010

Mali Meeting

Finally, 9 hours of sleep! Nearly, as it was the maid that woke me up 30 minutes before I wanted to get up. Very annoying. I didn't think she'd show up at 8:30 am, otherwise I would have put the don't disturb sign out.

So I went for breakfast at 9 am; this time the breakfast room was full of people, lots of families. After a good breakfast I returned to my room and ended up talking with Paul for a while. The car IS repairable after all, but we don't know yet how much it will cost. I guess that's good news.

I then went to the fitness room to run on the treadmill - it felt great! I had lunch in my room, eating the groceries I bought when I arrived in town. In the afternoon I spent precious time with God, getting ready for the evening meeting. I had a message to preach, without knowing whether I'd get to do so. I also had physical healing on my heart, having seen lots of sick people the last few days.

I still hadn't connected with the pastor who was so kind to let us use his facility for the meeting tonight. I was told he wanted to have dinner with me before the meeting. At just before 5 pm he called, saying he was on his way and would be there 15 minutes later. So I quickly got ready to leave for the meeting. Good thing I thought this might happen.

At 5:10 pm I met the pastor and one of his daughters in the lobby. The rest of his family joined us at Ruby Tuesday's. I really don't like eating before ministering, so I just had a baked potato. I enjoyed getting to know this family. They are closer to "my stream", knowing a lot of people I know, including Jill Austin.

It was a quick dinner, since we had to get to the church. It was a beautiful building. Tara Jackson - the singer - was already there. She donated her time and talent to draw people out to come; unfortunately that plan didn't work. Nobody had come because of her, and very few people showed up.

She did a sound check, and they also made my video presentation work. Wonderful! A few minutes after 7 pm we started. Tara sang songs for half an hour; she has a great voice. She also told about her ministry, and encouraged people to help her there.

I decided to spend time with God during that time, and knelt on the floor seeking His face. I was somewhat disappointed that so few people had shown up.

After she was done, Karen came up to introduce me. She did great. Before I came up, everyone watched the video presentation.

I came up, adjusting my microphone until it worked. The few people that had showed up were so quiet... it's always hard to get started, and it takes me a little time before the atmosphere changes.

I started giving a quick version of my story, telling them how I ended up in Mali. Karen had wanted me to do ministry, so that's why I was ready to preach. When I was done sharing, people started asking questions, which was great, but time kept passing. It was already 9 pm when the questions ceased. I looked at Karen and knew she wanted ministry done; I was a little at a loss as to how to proceed, but decided to do a quick message and then pray for healing.

So I shared on this healing message faster than I had ever done before. It didn't feel anointed at all; too quick to get anything out of it really, and too short to really get people ready to receive healing. Oh well. I then started praying - that was a good choice. I took my time drawing us closer to HIM. I also prayed for healing right there from the front, kneeling on the floor.

Then I asked people to come forward if they wanted me to pray for them. Many came, most for healing. So many needs! In this picture I'm praying for Karen's brother who has terminal cancer.

After praying for people I started talking with them; many were wonderfully sweet people. Some of them put checks in my hand. Next time I come I expect more open doors.

The pastor took me back home. He told me they have a guest room, and even a treadmill, and I can stay with them next time.

Well, after doing all this writing, it's now going on 1 am, and I should get some sleep. God is good!

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Thursday, February 4, 2010

Bible Pathway

Another 6-hour night; I'd had a hard time falling asleep. My alarm went off at 6:40 am; it felt like the middle of the night! A few minutes later I went to the breakfast room, where I was the only person.

At 7:40 am my friend Karen arrived. I've known Karen for 10 years or so, but had never met her in person until this morning, so it was an exciting moment.

I somehow got connected with Karen back then and ended up being the German translator for the ministry she was working for - Bible Pathway. It took me about two years to translate their devotional which is a commentary of the whole Bible, and quite a big book. I stayed in touch with Karen after that, since she has such a huge heart and would always try to help me, connect me, and get people to pray for me.

Now she picked me up to take me to the Bible Pathway offices. When I decided to go to Nashville, I didn't even know that this is where Karen lived and where Bible Pathway was located! Since it's a suburb of Nashville. Amazing!

We were a little late, and everyone was already waiting for us. They have a half hour devotional time every morning at 7:55 am, and this morning I was the chosen one to speak. First they had a time of praying for needs, and then it was my turn. I'm not a morning person, so I didn't feel like I did a very good job. And they even videotaped it! At the end they asked a few questions. Then they prayed for me.

Then it was time to meet all those people; they were all very sweet. They wanted to take some pictures - like this one with Al who is the second in command, and the pastor at whose church I shared last night. Then they had me share on video what the Bible means to me - in three different languages. I started in English - the French version was better, and my third time (German) it was best. I should have started over there!

Then one of the ladies asked me some more questions because they are going to put the work in Mali into their next monthly mailing letter, and she's gonna write the article. Praise God!

We were done, and Karen took me to the dollar tree store since I wanted to buy all kinds of cheap stuff for my kids. I had a great time picking up toys, and tooth brushes, and who knows what. The cart was pretty full, and I ended up paying $70 - only, really, with all I got for that!

From there Karen and I went to Olive Garden, where the other ladies from Bible Pathway would join us for lunch. We had a great time talking, fellowshipping and eating good food.

The ladies told us that the founder of Bible Pathway wanted Karen and me to come back to the office. He hadn't been there in the morning, but only walked by me at one point.

Dr. Hash is a remarkable 87-year-old man. He wanted some pictures taken, and had put up this huge Africa map. He had me point at my city, and he held one of my brochures in his hands. Then we sat down, and had a few more pictures taken, before we started talking seriously.

He said he had looked at my brochure and noticed how much we fall short in our budget with our regular supporters, and wanted to help. He asked me more questions about what I do in Mali, especially in terms of training. Then he made a suggestion that confirmed the idea I'd had in the morning.

I've been frustrated in Mali with the lack of training materials, and the feeling of not doing a good job training them. This morning I was reminded of the Bible Pathway devotional, and thought of how I could use with with my kids for their daily devotional time, having Paul translate the French in Bambara.

And now Dr. Hash suggested the devotional/commentary to be translated into Bambara - orally, recording it on mp3, since so many people can't read or write. And then put the Bambara NT and the commentary on a solar Bible unit, and get it to our village churches. Wow! Praise God! I love it!

I was amazed when Dr. Hash said he wanted to give us money to help us with the translation. He also asked about Bibles in Mali, and so I told him how we've had the need to buy Bambara Bibles for a long time, but the shop had moved, and the Bibles are expensive. However, my kids have recently been asking for Bibles. So I was able to tell him all that, and he wanted to help with buying Bibles. He added more money to help with daily expenses. Praise God! I was very excited after our meeting! He also said he'd like to help get the word about Mali out... I felt very blessed, and honored. He's quite an amazing man of God.

By the way, I had a text message from Paul this morning that he needed to talk with me. One of our two pick-up trucks has broken down terminally - it's beyond repair. That's not good news, as we need two vehicles. I guess it gives us all the more reason to pray for a bus now - a vehicle to fit in all the kids. With all the other areas where we need money, that's going to be hard... but not too hard for God.

From Bible Pathway we went to the bank so I could deposit all the checks I had collected, and then to Office Depot to continue buying the stuff on my list of things to take back to Mali. Then Karen dropped me off at the hotel. I was so tired, I was really glad to be "home" and have nothing else scheduled the rest of the day.

What I really wanted was to go to the fitness room, but I felt too tired for that. So I started working on the computer and getting off the packaging materials of all the stuff I had bought. Later I had some food, and after that I felt a little more awake and capable of running on the treadmill. So I went to the fitness room, and enjoyed their treadmill for half an hour.

Well, the afternoon and evening have passed quickly, and I'm really tired. It's 11 pm, and I'm heading to bed soon. The good news: I get to sleep in tomorrow! PRAISE GOD!

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Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Arriving In Nashville

After 6 hours of sleeping I got up to have breakfast in the hotel restaurant. I was amazed that I was the only person in the restaurant! It took them forever, but I finally got a really good breakfast. I ate really quickly to get out of the hotel "on time". I went back to my room and finished packing, then went into the lobby to catch a shuttle to the airport.

The lady that had been in the same boat with me last night was also in the shuttle; she seemed to have calmed down a little. We got to the airport, and I went through security - there were no lines. I got to the gate pretty quickly. I was not going to miss this flight.

The flight was only 45 minutes; I was very tired and rested the whole flight. At 10:30 am I landed in Nashville.

As I walked towards the baggage claim, my friends were suddenly standing in front of me. It was good seeing them again; last time was a year ago at Jill Austin's funeral. She's the one who connected us.

We got my bag, and started on the 40 minute drive south of Nashville to Murfreesboro. We got to the hotel and I checked in; I was glad to find my boxes there, waiting for me. The lady was very friendly. I was glad they already let me into my room this early in the day. I liked the room that would be my home for the next few days.

We then left again to go to the closeby Walmart; I would have to take care of several meals myself, which was possible thanks to the fridge and Microwave in my room, and so I needed groceries. It was great to be grocery shopping again!

From there we went to Cracker Barrel for lunch. It's a unique southern restaurant, with different kind of food. I was sure tired, but enjoyed the company and food. After our meal we returned to the hotel, and I had to say good-bye. It was 2 pm.

At the restaurant I had finally been able to connect with the pastor of the church I'd be at later in the evening. I was glad to hear we'd have dinner AFTER the meeting, which gave me an additional hour of rest.

First I unpacked and got things ready for tonight. Then I lay down and set my alarm for 90 minutes later. I slept wonderfully, and could have continued sleeping. But I had to get up. I got ready for the meeting, and was barely done when the pastor called that he had arrived to take me to the meeting.

Methodist Church Meeting

It was the first time I met the pastor - a local Methodist pastor who loves the presence of God and Holy Spirit. We had a half hour drive south to get to his church. He's actually pastoring two churches that are close to each other, and tonight the people of both churches would come together to hear me speak.

I liked the little country church when I saw it - it was cute. It was really nice inside as well; they had just expanded and renovated it. Slowly the building was filling up. We got the TV and DVD player so I could show my presentation, but it refused to work. Great! There would not be a video presentation.

Then the pastor started the meeting, and asked everyone to come forward, and asked for prayer needs. One person then prayed a prayer for everything. Then the pastor introduced me and gave me the word. I simply started sharing my story, and what is going on in Mali today. The whole meeting was only to last one hour. The time was just right. I did a Q & A time, and a few questions were asked. I'd had a great time sharing, and there was a good atmosphere.

Then the pastor asked everyone to come forward and surround me, and he prayed a prayer of blessing over me. The meeting was over - and the pastor encouraged people to give an offering, and take my materials.

I talked with a few people, as they were leaving. Everyone was really sweet - real sweet southern people.

We left at 8:30 pm to go to a restaurant for dinner - a new one for me: Charlie's. There were 6 of us - the pastor and his wife, and their son and his family. We had a great time eating good food and talking. They are really sweet people! It was a great first contact, and I'll be back here for more.

The pastor then took me back to the hotel, another half-hour drive, where I arrived at 10:30 pm. Now I'm trying to go to bed by midnight, since I have to leave the hotel at 7:30 am to go to an 8 am meeting. That's awfully early for me!

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Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Journey To Nashville

I went to bed far too late last night, and had no clue what time we'd leave for the airport this morning. So I set my alarm clock to go off early, and was ready by 8:30 am. I had a wonderful breakfast of bagel and cream cheese, and then I got to talk to Paul over skype. The good news: Paul already got his visa - after the very first interview!!! PRAISE GOD! Now all it takes is money for him to go to his best friend's wedding in Topeka in May, and then on to the HIM leaders conference, and Augusta in June, and possibly my own wedding. He might get a 5-year visa now.

We left the house at 9:45 am - once more good-bye to LA! This year I might get to come to LA three times, though! I enjoyed my last hour, riding in the car, talking with my wonderful host; it was already the third time I stayed with them.

I arrived at LAX at 10:45 am and checked in. When I reached security, I was surprised at the masses of people. Good thing I was early! And good thing I have certain privileges as a frequent flyer, which meant shorter lines. After the passport and boarding card check, I stood in line at security forever. They were seriously short on personnel, and because one bag had to be checked, and no one was available, we had to just wait.

There was a body scanner right there, but they only sent very few people through it. In fact, I only saw one person go in there. It' s the first time I've seen one of those scanners.

After security, I went to my gate and waited for boarding. Everything seemed on track. We got on the plane, and were ready to leave - but didn't. They then told us that maintenance had to check something, and they were waiting for the green light! Great! I already had a very short layover to start with!

We ended up leaving one hour later than planned - and are scheduled to land five minutes AFTER my connection to Nashville leaves. I just hope I make it to Nashville today - the hotel is already paid, and that's just one factor.

Now I'm sitting on the plane writing, since there are no TV screens on this 3h 15min flight. At least I make good use of my time :-).

Stuck In Memphis

We landed at 6:47 pm; my flight was to leave at 6:55 pm. Thankfully the gate was in the same terminal, but I arrived at the gate at 6:58, hoping the plane would be delayed - it wasn't. I was not the only one on my plane who wanted to catch that connection, and was second in line.

This had been the last flight to Nashville of the day. The lady in front of me was mad, talking to them really bad. She was right with one thing - not one person had apologized. I was actually very surprised because usually the pilot or superior flight attendant apologizes for the delay as you land. Not this time.

It took them forever to take care of that lady, but thankfully they were faster with me.

Of course the gate I arrived at and the gate I would have left at were as far apart as possible. I was at the very end of the terminal, and had to walk back all the way. I had been given a $7 voucher for dinner, and one for breakfast. That's ridiculously little when you look at prices here. I picked up something to eat - not even much or anything special - and paid twice that.

When I got to the hotel shuttle, it was there but already packed with people who had missed their connection. So I had to wait for the next shuttle. By the time it came, it was full again.

The hotel was nearly in walking distance! When we got off, I was lucky to be the second person to walk into the hotel where there was already a long line of stranded people needing to check in. I waited for a while before it was my turn. I was given my key card, and found my way to my room.

The first thing I did was turn up the heat, and then I remembered it was Tuesday night, and turned on NBC to watch THE BIGGEST LOSER. I was excited that I got to see it live for once! (Instead of online two days later.) So I enjoyed watching it and eating my simple dinner. I also called the hotel in Nashville, and Travelocity, and was happy to find out they would refund what I paid for this night at the hotel in Nashville. At least this saves me money!

I was excited to see the bathtub and could not resist taking a wonderful, hot bath. Heavenly!

Well, I should not go to bed too late. Thankfully the flight is not too early. The disadvantage is that I get into Nashville later, and won't have that much time before the evening meetings tomorrow.

I also miss the gym... I had hoped to use it tonight! I was going to ask whether they have a fitness room at this hotel, but then I realized I don't have any workout clothes, since my checked bag is at the airport.

Something funny to close with: After skiing yesterday I had taken out my contacts to give my eyes some rest. This morning the bright orange contact case was gone - it was mysterious. I was then told that my hosts' two cats take things and hide them. They told me how they took a pair of glasses once, and it took them forever to find them. Thankfully I had backup lenses with me - two of them. Now all I have to do is buy a new case.

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Monday, February 1, 2010

Skiing In California

I went to bed at 9 pm last night, knowing I'd have to leave the house at 6:30 am - very early. I had a cup of tea in the morning before we left a little later than planned.

Last summer my host here in Pasadena invited me to go skiing with him this January, and so we did. Another local HIM pastor joined us. We drove a total of about 90 minutes to the skiing resort. Our first stop was the rental place you see in the picture. They had their equipment, but I needed boots, skis and poles.

We continued on to the skiing resort, and finally snow started covering the landscape around us. I was starting to get excited! I love snow!

Since it's Monday, there weren't a lot of people at Mountain High, and we got a good parking spot. We put our shoes on, and were ready to get started. I was excited!

We walked up to the ticket counters to get my ski pass. Then it was finally time to put the skis on and go up! The first thing I noticed was that the ski lift looked old. When we got on, I was shocked that there was no security bar. You could have easily slipped off the seats! In Austria you won't find a single chair lift without security bars! They're mandatory!

After the first easy slope, we went to a harder one, and continued on from there. I ran ski races as a child, wanting to become a professional, and later a ski instructor, so I ski very well. The HIM pastor was amazing - skiing at 78 years of age, though he wasn't that good at it. We got separated from him, and he was perfectly happy skiing on his own the rest of the day. My host skied very well, and so we speeded down the short slopes only to be back on the lift again.

The mountain is 8000 feet high, and the view on top was amazing. Especially in the direction where the desert lay - it's all flat and brown back there. Amazing!

Another thing that's different from Austria is the color coding for the slopes - green is easy, blue intermediate, and black diamond hard. The slopes are not numbered, but have names. 90% of people were snowboarders! Probably because they have lots of ramps for them everywhere.

At 11:30 we met up with the pastor for lunch. How I wished for some typical Alpine food like what we'd eat skiing in the Alps! I was another reminder I was a long way from the Austrian Alps. Lunch was cheeseburger (a good one).

What amazed me was that they have a check-in where you can drop of your skis for free. They give you a number, and you can be sure nobody is going to steal your skis.

After the short lunch break we hit the slopes again, and went hard, up and down. It was getting a little boring to me to go down the very same slopes over and over. It's a small resort.

The weather was pretty decent, with the sun partially out, and the snow was perfect. At 3 pm the fog started moving in. We stopped at 3:30 pm and went to get some hot chocolate while waiting for the pastor. It had been a wonderful day!

At 4 pm we connected with the pastor, and went to the car to get changed and leave. We dropped of the equipment, and went on our way. I was pretty tired!

We dropped off the pastor, picked up some food on the way, and got home at 6:30 pm, where we had a nice meal. I was very tired! I should be sleeping well tonight, though it's going to be too short as I'm leaving for the airport in the morning. That's why I did my packing tonight, as well as catching up with emails and just relaxing. I'm glad I had this fun day today - in the midst of my very busy schedule this trip.

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