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Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Nightmare Day

I don't think you need to know all the details of problem after problem, crisis after crisis, frustration after frustration.

Abdias was told he no longer goes to day school, but we'd let him go to evening school, and of course he didn't listen. He refused to get out of the car that was going to school. Christian had to literally drag him out of the car.

Later in the day we were called by a lawyer that he would take steps against us. Paul knows this man. They are getting together - together with our lawyer - later this week. Pray for a peaceful resolution.

Since only one of our three vehicles is working, we were not able to go to the village of Goro today. One of our rules is "when something breaks down, have it fixed right away", and still, even after I told Paul to have it fixed, both vehicles weren't. We just bought a new battery to put into our bus. This afternoon the mechanic came - and put that battery into the pick-up truck. Later Paul told me that both car batteries had been bad. I don't know HOW many batteries we've bought this past year, and it drives me crazy. They are saying they're gonna finish repairing the pick-up today, and then the team is going to the village tomorrow. But the bus will still not be operational.

So, those were some of the highlights of my day.

Since they couldn't go to the village, our visitors went downtown this afternoon to do some shopping. They dropped off the kids at school on the way, and then picked them back up when they came back.

When they returned, it was up to me to cook dinner for our guests. I made scrambled eggs for them. After we were done eating, we had to make sure the kids were getting ready for bed. At 8 pm we did our family meeting. Then Christian and Paul accompanied Cliff to the hotel; Paul needed to pay Cliff's bill tonight since nobody speaks English there. While they were gone, I stayed with the kids as they were still showering and going to bed.

And now I'm back in the office, hoping for an earlier bedtime.

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Monday, November 29, 2010

Claudia's Day

I had every intention of going to the village with the team this afternoon, but the events of this morning increased frustration. Coupled with the tiredness, I didn't feel up to going to the village and so I stayed home.

When the kids came home from school at 12:30 pm today, I asked Abdias to go to his room since he was grounded for his actions of the past few days. He actually blatantly disobeyed me once again in the middle of the celebration yesterday, which really shocked me. Instead of accepting his punishment, he once again was only angry and asking what he had done, refusing to go to his room. That was the last straw. I told him he was out of the house.

When everyone went to the village, I asked Abdias to leave the property. In the evening he came back to sleep among the street children. He went to sleep right away.

I told Paul we would offer Abdias that we'll let him go to evening school and sleep with the street children, as long as he doesn't cause any more problems. That should be a good offer for Abdias who wants to do whatever he wants to do. It's still sad, and this plus some other things kept me from falling asleep in the afternoon when I needed a nap.

I took a advantage of the quiet afternoon doing some administrative work. Time went by fast, and by 6 pm the returned from the village. A short while later we had dinner together, and then Paul and Christian drove our Austrian visitor Nicholas to the airport. When they returned, we did our family meeting in my living room. The first Sunday of advent was yesterday, but yesterday we couldn't do our first advent family meeting. So we did it tonight.

I lit the first of 4 Christmas candles, and we took communion together. Then I prayed a prayer of blessing over each kid. It was a precious meeting.

Christian, Paul, Kibet and Cliff left in the car to return Cliff to his hotel, and so it was up to me to make sure all the kids were going to bed. They asked me whether I could read them a story from the comic-book type teenager Bible, and so I did. I love those moments with them.

An hour after they had left, the three guys returned, telling me they had had problems with our car. It looks like our new driver never checks oil or water, and the engine had run out of water; not a good thing!

Now it's 11 pm and my three teenagers have NOT returned from evening school, and I'm worried like crazy. I went to wake up Paul, but discovered that Paul was not even on our base. Nobody knew where he had gone. I've asked him so many times to tell me when he leaves at night!

I called him and told him the kids had not come home. So he started looking for them together with his friend and his motorbike. At midnight the boys finally arrived. They told me that class had lasted until 10 pm, and that it's hard to get a bus at that time of day, and so it took them 2 hours to get home. You can't be serious! I told them that I had been crazy with worry. They said that they cannot walk that late as the police would pick them up and take them to the station.

A few minutes later Paul returned. As expected, he did not understand me but got upset instead.

Village of Dara

Saloum was the designated driver to take everyone to the village of Dara which is 45 minutes away. The back of the pick-up truck was full of kids, and there was no more room for any more. Our non-resident kids that were there had to stay in Bamako - except for one.

I was told that they had a good time in the village. Paul led them in a time of praise, then Kibet tried to teach them dances, and then Cliff spoke. In the end they prayed for people, and God moved.

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Sunday, November 28, 2010

6th Anniversary Celebration

It was time for our sixth anniversary celebration. Six years ago today - to the day - we did our first service, and Centre Apostolique Malien was launched. It's now become a tradition that we invite a guest speaker for an anniversary weekend, doing a series of meetings, and then go to the villages. We did five meetings these past three days, and today was the big final celebration.

It was hard getting up in the morning, after another short night, and I did get up later than planned. I then had all kinds of things to prepare and manage for the celebration that was scheduled to start at 3 pm. Because of that, the baptism preparation was on after lunch, at 1 pm.

I gathered the 6 candidates - 3 of them kids in our house, and 3 of them kids that are still on the street - and gave them my teaching on the meaning of baptism. We had interviewed all of them before to see whether they were really ready.

I then demonstrated what the baptism would be like - with the help of Barbie. I explained to them about the testimony they would give, the questions I would ask them before baptizing them, and everything else they needed to know. This picture was taken right by the baptismal tank outside, as I explained to them how to hold their nose shut.

Cliff arrived at our base late morning, and took advantage of our internet, until we had lunch together some time after noon.

Even before the baptism preparation we had started to set up everything for the meeting. Somehow it was hard to motivate most of the children to help. Joseph has been the greatest help of all. We kept going non-stop after lunch, and time went by very fast. I was still able to have those two portrait photos taken after I had gotten dressed in my new Malian clothing. I'm still trying to find the perfect picture for my book cover, but the resolution is never good enough for the publisher.

The last picture shows me with pastor Kibet, Cliff's assistant who came with him.

We had announced that the meeting started at 3 pm, but it was actually 4 pm before we really got started. We knew from the beginning that we would not start until 3:30 pm, but then the sound system mysteriously refused to work. We could never figure out why. We found a way around in the end to at least use 2 microphones at the time. Cliff and Kibet had to speak without a mic, but then nobody speaks English here anyway. And even without the mic Cliff's voice was so loud, it actually hurt my ear when I stood next to him.

We started off with about 45 minutes of Bambara praise that Paul led. He had his (street) kid choir behind him, and they were singing and dancing and did a great job. Those in white robes are the baptism candidates.

I was amazed when it was actually Fanta who started the dancinc when she came forward dancing in the free space. Others followed suit, and soon, a cloud of dust rose from the dry ground as people were dancing for the Lord. This picture shows Paul's step-mom Elisabeth and Fanta.

After our time of praise, I welcomed everyone and briefly shared the history of our church. Then it was time for the baptism. I had the children come up one after another, and asked them three questions: What was your life like before Jesus, how did you find Jesus, and how has your life changed since. Their answers were very similar and touching.

Most of them had been involved in drugs, sex and stealing before, then got to come to our center, heard the gospel, believed in Jesus, and left all those acts behind them. What a precious time!

These are the three kids that live in our house: Adama (15) just moved in a week ago, then Boubacar (8) and Daouda (11).

After they shared their testimony, we moved over to the baptismal tank. Unfortunately people didn't keep their distance, but crowded all around us.

One after another the kids stepped into the tank. We asked them whether they believed that Jesus was God, died for their sins, was resurrected and went to heaven. The second question was whether they accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior, and the third whether they wanted to serve Him the rest of their lives. They said yes to each question, and then we baptized them. These are the same three kids from above in the same order.

While the boys changed into dry clothes, I was glad that Christian had memorized a French song he sang for everyone. The kids had been working on a skit, but didn't practice enough to be able to present it, unfortunately.

The boys then returned and lined up in the front. We asked Cliff and Kibet to come and join us to pray and/or prophesy over them. Some of them had strong prophetic words, and we recorded them all. Boubacar had the same prophetic word as last year, that he would be a prophet. Cool. I prophesied over Daouda, and it even surprised me how powerful the word was. Daouda is 11, and a very long way from its fulfillment. These pictures show them in the same order as above.

The kids sat back down, and it was time to introduce Cliff. So I told them how I met Cliff, and what he's doing today. Then Cliff and Kibet came up. Kibet said a few words and then handed it over to Cliff.

Cliff started preaching on the rich young ruler, bringing out the most important point. In terms of special guests, we had our construction manager there, a previous driver we had to fire, and the school director where most of our resident kids go to school. Our estimate was that there were about 150 people in total.

In the end, Kibet and Cliff had everyone stand up and prayed over the microphone. Then they asked those who wanted to be prayed for individually to come forward. So they started praying for people, with Paul interpreting, while I was busy organisationally and trying to keep order.

This picture shows Cliff, Christian, Kossi (construction manager) and Kibet.

It was dark by the time the meeting was over, and I distributed tasks to our children. We were about to serve the banquet that was not quite ready yet.

So I had everyone sit down - at least I tried - and then my boys brought plates of food and handed them out. However, people would get up and move around, especially the street children, or go to the restricted area in the back, and it was a constant, tiring struggle to keep control. I was on my own, with the guys praying, and was glad that Joseph was available to help at least.

I set up a table with chairs inside the dining hall for our speakers to eat at. Finally they were done praying and came in so we could eat together. Our kids were still outside handing out food, and I was hoping things were working out. They came into the dining hall later to eat as well.

We then shut our gates, and started putting away all our chairs and benches, and the street kids got their mattresses out to go to bed.

As I was managing everything, I noticed that one of the younger street kids was upset. I found out that another street kid had tried to abuse him sexually during the night on our base. I told our night guard that he had to tell me stuff like that right away, told the kid he could never sleep on our base again, and threw him out. He was a kid that I had noticed negatively these past few days because of his behavior.

And then I noticed that Abdias was planning on sleeping with the street kids. I was surprised, as we had talked this morning, and he had asked forgiveness, listing the things he had done wrong. I thought he would accept the consequences for his sin, and that he had returned to our household. What was he doing in the dining hall? In any case, he refused to come back into the house, which I thought was strange. Later Paul was able to convince him to come back inside. He was visibly angry. What's going on inside this boy (sigh)?

I thought I'd get to go to bed earlier tonight, but it was once again close to 2 am.

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Saturday, November 27, 2010

Fourth Meeting Of Six

Today was a really crazy day. And it didn't start well at all, besides me being very tired. More car troubles with the car not wanting to start. They moved the car batteries around; now the bus does not have a battery, and one of our two cars does not start. So we only have one working vehicle. That really messed up everything, and Cliff only got to our base at 10:30 while Paul started leading worship at 9:30 am.

This morning seems so long ago that I can't even recall what all the challenges were. While the kids have been doing great the past few days, I might have praised them too much because today the good work was over. They were playing around this morning instead of getting the dining hall ready for the meeting.

Paul had to lead us in a time of Bambara praise for a whole hour, since we were waiting for Cliff. There weren't many people besides the street children. More came later. I don't know if everyone was tired, but our praise time seemed relatively pathetic compared to the last few meetings; it did pick up a little in the end.

When Cliff arrived, it was his turn right away. However, he actually had Kibet preach. Only in the end did Cliff come up and help with the time of prayer. We closed the meeting at 11:30 am.

We had to wait for quite a while before lunch was ready. Once again, Cliff, Kibet and Christian ate in my living room. After lunch, Saloum took Cliff back to the hotel. I was glad Elisabeth decided to stay with us for the whole day, together with her kids plus a few more. It gave us a taste of what it will be like when they all move here in a few months. I think Christian was a little overwhelmed when 18 kids crowded into the living room playing. I got a movie out later that they could watch.

Fifth Meeting Of Six

I absolutely had to lie down again to be able to keep going; I stayed down for 2 hours. When I got back up, I didn't have much time left before I had to start cooking. I had to cook dinner for our guests; pasta bolognese. At the same time I was managing all kinds of things.

Cliff arrived in time for once, and the three of them had dinner in my living room. I was too busy to eat.

The meeting was supposed to start at 7 pm, but things weren't ready. It took a lot of effort to get them ready and to get the kids into the room so we could pray together before the meeting. Since it was so late, the gates were already open and neighbors and street kids coming in. At 7:15 pm Paul started the meeting.

One of the big challenges of today was Abdias (17). Abdias has done more stupid things in our house than any other kid. And his behavior goes up and down; it's either very good or very bad. These past few days it has been bad, and today it got REALLY bad. I sent him to his room after lunch, but as always, he refused to go. I had to send Paul to talk to him before he finally complied.

When it was time for the evening meeting, the problems continued. When he sat down to play the drums, I told him he was off the worship team tonight. As a result, Saloum (20) refused to play the drum set and played the Malian drum instead; in a very half-hearted, pathetic way. I was not happy.

After a while worship picked up; Paul did a great job as always. Everyone was dancing again, and really getting into it.

Suddenly Abdias sat down at the drum and just started playing. I was in total shock that he dared to disobey me like that again. I tried to stop him, but couldn't. So I told Saloum to stop; he had switched to the drum set. Finally I succeeded in Abdias leaving, but something wasn't right. He was dancing like crazy, and little Jonathan started crying because of him; I don't know what happened. Then I saw him going over the top with the way he was throwing around Hama. I watched in horror as everything seemed to get ouf of hand, and I knew I had to stop it immediately.

I got Paul to stop, and proceeded to the piano for the time of French worship. I did an offering in the middle of the third song. I was finishing up, when Cliff came to me and said that he felt that he was supposed to pray for six of my boys. So he asked me to keep playing, while he called those six forward to be prayed for. It was Jérémie, Amadou, Florentin, Karim, Abdias and Joseph.

Cliff prayed for them and prophesied over some of them, and half of them went down in the Spirit. Then he asked who else wanted prayer, and more of my kids came up; only Adama and Saloum didn't.

Then Cliff started preaching, and it was his best message yet. He talked about loving God, and loving our neighbor, and anger and hatred in our hearts making that impossible. I was hoping Abdias was listening, amongst others.

At the end, Kibet and Cliff prayed for people again, then we closed the meeting, and started putting everything away.

I wanted to talk to Abdias right away to find out whether God touched him (he was on the floor) and he repented. Unfortunately not. He still claimed he had not done anything. I told him I could not keep watching him doing whatever he wants, letting him disobey and be in rebellion. I was disappointed that he had not repented. I told him he was sleeping in the dining hall with the street kids tonight.

I returned to my living room where Cliff was. I heard Paul talking with Abdias, trying to convince him to repent and ask forgiveness. A minute later he was at my door in tears saying, "forgive me", but then he walked away. I had a hard time taking this seriously. I did not see Abdias again after that tonight.

I went to do the family meeting with the rest of the kids. We all hugged, and by then Saloum was back from dropping Elisabeth and kids off. So Cliff got into the car for Saloum to take him to his hotel.

With the kids in bed, it was time for me to go to the office to write my blog. It looks like it will be 2 am again before I get to go to bed.

What a draining day it was! With the worst worship time, and best message, and a kid being on the brink of being kicked out of the house.

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Friday, November 26, 2010

Second Meeting Of Six

It was really late before I went to bed, and when my alarm went off this morning, I was absolutely not ready to get up. I had no choice.

We had advertised the meetings starting at 9 am, knowing people arrive late. We actually started our meeting at 9:30 am. Cliff arrived close to 10 am, because Saloum had to take our kids to school and then to pick up Elisabeth who cooks lunch on our base.

I knew we wouldn't have many people on a Friday morning. Our own kids were in school, and so we only had one widow and all the others were street kids or neighbors' kids. Joseph was playing the simple drum, and then Saloum took over. Paul was leading us in Bambara praise, and the kids really joined in.

Then Cliff came up, and he did a great job bringing an easy-to-understand but important message. I noticed that half the kids were falling asleep; it helped that Cliff tried to make it interactive.

At one point, Kibet came up to teach the kids some Kenyan dance moves, which was a lot of fun.

In the end, Cliff and Kibet prayed for people. And I found out that the widow that was there has the HIV virus. They prayed for healing for her.

We were done by 11:30 am. Saloum left to pick up our kids from school. The street kids and neighbors left our base.

We went into my living room, and 45 minutes later lunch was ready; the traditional rice with peanut sauce.

After lunch, Saloum took Cliff to the hotel, and Elisabeth home.

Third Meeting Of Six

Poor Paul was running errands all afternoon, while Christian and I both had opportunity to lie down and take a nap; so did Cliff and Kibet. Our driver Saloum also had a busy day of driving all day. I sure needed the nap as I was exhausted, and it helped.

Saloum picked up Cliff before the 7 pm meeting, but he got to our base late, and dinner wasn't ready either. It would have to wait until after the service.

The kids all helped getting our dining hall ready for the meeting, and at 6:30 pm we all prayed together for the meeting. Then the kids went to have dinner, and we let the street kids in to eat as well.

Saloum had to go pick up Elisabeth and her kids, while we started the meeting at 7 pm. Paul did a great job leading us in Bambara praise for 45 minutes. Once again, all the kids and adults were dancing, with flags and without, having a great time. These are two video clips from tonight:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykKM2t4Mr_I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqoqQKLGqlg

Saloum was playing the drum set, while Abdias was playing the Malian drum. The two are a great team, and are doing a great job! Well done, kids!

Then I came up to lead us in French worship for three songs. Next, Cliff came up to preach. He brought a great message. It was frustrating to see people fall asleep, and street kids talking and doing all kinds of stuff. At our family meeting later, though, all my kids could repeat something that Cliff had said. Good job!

After Cliff was done, he and Kibet led everyone in a prayer, and then prayed for people. Some ladies who had come seemed to really be getting into the Spirit; don't know if they really did. I asked for testimonies after worship, and nobody had one.

We put everything away, and once we were done, we gathered in the living room for our family meeting. It was 10 pm once again. After the kids went to bed, Christian and I joined Cliff and Kibet in my living room where they were already eating.

Once Saloum returned from dropping Elisabeth off at home, it was time for him to take Cliff home. So we said good-night. Christian, Kibet and I kept talking, and had a really good conversation. At 11 pm we decided to break it up, and I went to the office to start picking pictures and finish writing today's blog.

I hope to be in bed by 1 am. Tomorrow is going to be another long and tiring day. (Well, I wasn't.)

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Thursday, November 25, 2010

First Meeting Of Six

I was really tired this morning and had a hard time getting going. I actually lay back down at 11 am because I was unable to get any work done. While I didn't sleep, the rest did help.

Paul was in town together with Cliff and Kibet, to take care of putting their visas in the passport, withdraw money, and then they already returned because they were worn out. Shopping was postponed.

They had lunch in my living room, eating what all the kids are eating. I was in my office doing some necessary work, still being way too tired. Paul, Christian, and Kibet left, and only Cliff was left. Unfortunately the car was running errands, and so we had to wait for it to return before our driver could take Cliff back to the hotel. It was nearly 3:30 pm before they left.

I was really glad to be by myself again, and soon lay down to get some much-needed sleep. I had a good nap that I wished could have been longer. When I got back up, it was time to get things ready for the first meeting.

While the guys were eating dinner, I was running around taking care of things, and making sure everything was ready. The kids did a great job helping getting everything set up. What a difference to just a few days ago! Then, they all showed their worst side. Right now, their behavior is quite the opposite - I'm proud of them!

Everything was ready in time, and then we started praying together before the meeting. At 7 pm we opened the gates to let people in.

As always, few are on time. It was primarily the street children. As time progressed, more and more people showed up; some of our widows, as well as neighbors.

Paul started with Bambara praise, singing for 45 minutes. Again, I brought out my flags. And then, we just had an absolutely amazing time of praising God with dancing, flags. Everyone participated! I was amazed to see the widows and female neighbors and girls dance around the pillar. That's a first! Even Fanta danced - AND with flags! Wow. The kids all had a great time dancing like crazy, and I joined in - which they enjoyed a lot. I wished you guys had been there. This video clip gives you a tiny taste:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us1y0s8lZ2I

Then I came up to take us into a time of worship for about 15 minutes. It was good.

Then I introduced Cliff and handed it over to him. He did a great job bringing a message they needed to hear and could understand.

In the end Kibet came up and said a few words, and sang a song with everyone. Then I prayed a prayer of dedication to Jesus, and of forgiving anyone they needed to forgive.

Then Cliff returned to pray for people. I translated at first, but then let Paul do that job, while we started to put things away. It was relatively late, and the kids have school tomorrow morning. We got everything put away, and put the mattresses for the street kids up.

Our driver took Cliff back to his hotel, and I went to do the family meeting. It was about 10 pm already. I was amazed at how awake the kids were, since they usually sleep by this time. But then, we've been doing soaking every day after lunch - which is really "sanctified nap time", as I call it. It definitely helps.

We had a nice family meeting where I praised the kids for the good work, and found out that half the kids couldn't remember anything that Cliff said tonight. We all hugged, and they had to go straight to bed. They're going to be tired in school tomorrow! But we'll be tired too. The second meeting is in just a few hours, at 9 am.

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Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Arrival Of Speakers

I'm so tired, but I want to keep you up to date with how the meetings with Cliff are going.

This morning we were pretty busy with last minute preparations to get things ready for our speakers' arrival. Paul was running errands in town, while the rest of us worked on the base. Time was going by fast.

Cliff and Kibet were scheduled to arrive at 12:45 pm, coming from Uganda via Nairobi. 40 minutes before arrival time they could not tell me whether they were on time. 5 minutes before arrival they were able to confirm that the plane was on time.

So Paul and I left the base immediately, while Christian stayed to take care of the daily operations. Thankfully we're not far from the airport. We parked the car and went to the arrival terminal. I could see Cliff at the door right away, and he was asking for the originals of their entry visas that we had made here in Mali, scanned, and emailed to them. A while later Cliff and Kibet came back out. I had never met Kibet before. Paul met Cliff 5 years ago when Cliff was here for the first time. Joseph was also with us.

We then drove to our base, where the kids were picking up trash and washing the walls in our dining hall. They all came to greet Cliff and Kibet. We gave our visitors a little tour of the base, and then settled into my living room. I made coffee for everyone, and we sat down to talk, including Christian.

I got very tired after a while, and knew I needed to lie down if I wanted to be able to function at the prayer meeting. Today is the first day I'm starting to be able to breathe through my nose after 7 days of being sick. Thank God it's finally over!

We decided to do the prayer meeting already at 4 pm - and hour earlier - to have more time for the meeting, and less waiting time until the meeting. I finally was able to lie down for about 30 minutes, leaving our visitors in my living room to rest themselves. I fell asleep, and was rudely awakend by my alarm clock ten minutes before the meeting.

We got the dining hall ready for the meeting, and it took nearly until 4:30 pm before we got started. It was time to praise and worship God in French. We started off with MY REDEEMER LIVES (in French). I got my flags out again, and the kids love them.

There were quite a few street children, and some curious neighbors' kids came as well. We had a great time worshiping God, and the kids were free to dance and having a good time praising Him.

We also sang I'M TRADING MY SORROWS, and UNDIGNIFIED - all in French. I was hoping those familiar songs would help Cliff to worship even though he doesn't know French. At two points we did some intercession, praying for the upcoming meetings.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUWVWyrOrBA

Then we went into slower worshipful songs, entering into the presence of God. It was great to see many children with their eyes closed, truly worshiping God. I did a tiny bit of prophetic singing which I love doing. We went on for quite a while, before we stopped.

I asked Cliff whether he wanted to share anything, and so he gave a little teaching. Some of the kids were falling asleep, others seemed to have a hard time following.

After about 20 minutes, Cliff asked Kibet to come up, who led the children in prayer. They did some singing as well, and Paul did a great job singing in Bambara what he was singing in English. Cliff walked around praying for a few kids at the same time, and I had the challenge and opportunity to translate him into Bambara, which was fun.

They went on praying for a while, and then I closed the meeting. A few more kids still wanted prayer then, and so they prayed.

It was 6:30 pm, and three of my boys needed to leave for school. We decided to take our visitors out to eat, and were able to drop the kids off on the way. Christian stayed with the kids, and Paul came along for the ride.

We went to the only restaurant that is relatively close, and were the only ones sitting inside. Our visitors enjoyed the place and the food, and talked to the owner who had never talked with us before. Kibet (from Kenya) had the first ice cube ever in his life! Wow!

It was already after 8 pm before we left there to drive Cliff to his cute hotel; the place where we went with our kids for 3 days last summer. It was already dark, and a challenge to see the sign posts telling you where to leave the main road, but I succeeded. We then had another 4 kilometers on a dirt road, and it seemed like we'd never get there. Our visitors were very tired after a long trip from Uganda, plus the 3-hour time difference.

We walked to the reception, and got the key for Cliff's bungalow. Unfortunately the French owner was out of town. We walked to his bungalow, which was at quite a distance, but it was really beautiful; much nicer than our bungalows in the summer, as the bathroom was on the inside, more private, and bigger. Cliff also had an air condition; he's already been repeating how hot it is.

I could tell he was pretty tired, and so we said our good-byes and returned to the car parked at the entrance. Kibet fell asleep in the back seat during the 15-minute drive home.

I had told Christian to wait for us with the family meeting, and so the kids were all up, though ready for bed. We did the family meeting as quickly as possible as it was already late, and we still had a good time. Today the kids really did a good job with everything! I blessed them, praying over them, we all hugged, and off they went to bed. For me, it was off to the office as I had not been online for hours. And time to write this blog. I can tell you that I'm very tired myself and hope to go to bed at a decent time.

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Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Day Of Restoration

I knew today would be a crucial day, and decided to make it a day of prayer and fasting. It was the last day of our 3-week fast anyway; not easy for most of the kids though they're only asked to fast one meal a day.

Last night I emailed our legal advisor Daniel who is an older Malian gentleman who has been a Christian for a long time and who I appreciate greatly. Paul respects him a lot as well, and he would make a great spiritual Dad for him. One other time Paul was angry with an enemy of ours and not happy with my decision to go the path of humility and blessings, and I was so thankful when Daniel confirmed my actions as the right ones when talking to Paul. Of course, it's sad he needs to hear it from someone else to be in agreement with me...

Anyway, I was glad when Daniel replied that he was in town and could meet with Paul in the afternoon. He said he would call Paul in the morning, which he did. I'm glad that happened before Paul lost his phone later in the day (I hope he finds it again). Paul was asked to come to Daniel's place (not too far away) at 2 pm.

Paul talked with him for a long time. When he came back home, he asked to talk to me. We were able to talk, the way I would have wanted to talk with him two days ago. He asked forgiveness, and shared how hurt he was by Jérémie saying Paul didn't love him, when Paul loves Jérémie more than the other children even. We talked about Jérémie's need of healing, but also Paul's need for healing, and he agreed to do TPM sessions regularly again. I wished we had done one right away.

I told him that I was very concerned when he said yesterday that he didn't know what there was to talk about. I also told him I needed him to truly make an effort, as I was not willing to simply keep on going with him not changing. He understood. If only he could listen like this all the time.

I was glad in any case that this situation was over. Now we can concentrate on doing God's work again. I believe that much of what has happened recently is due to spiritual warfare. When the enemy launches an attack us, he attacks us where we are weakest - the unresolved, unhealed, unredeemed areas in our lives. That's why everyone showed his worst side. This intense warfare can only be a good sign that the upcoming meetings will be off the charts; though I myself have a hard time imagining that right now.

I have not even heard from our guest speaker in about two weeks, which is strange. At this time he should be in a plane on the way to Mali, as he arrives tomorrow at 1 pm.

Paul talked with Jérémie today to let him know he loves him. Jérémie said that Paul had stopped talking to him, while Paul was not even aware of it. I'm glad Jérémie has no more reason to leave us. Praise God!

Every night at our family meeting, I end it with reading a chapter of blessing over the children. I was amazed at the timing of tonight's chapter (the 37th or so). It was about the spirit dominating over the soul and body, and talked about true love from 1.Cor 13. Paul smiled when it talked about love not being easily angered. Thank you, Lord, for the timing!

What else did we do on this last day before our speakers arrive? Put up the Christmas decorations! I needed to do work with my hands today, do something just like that. Since Cliff doesn't leave until the first of December, I decided the decorations should be up before he comes. So with Joseph's and Christian's help, we put the Christmas pictures on the windows and doors, put the two advent calendars up, and the chains of light. It turned out beautiful. I've never put up the decorations this early!

As this day ends, I'm feeling exhausted but well. I feel like I've come out of an intense battle. Unfortunately there is no time to recover, but it's time to keep moving forward. Time to focus on the upcoming meetings!

Tonight we did a few interviews with kids that want to be baptized to determine whether they've really understood what a Christian is and to see whether they really love Jesus. It's exciting to see the list of people to baptize this Sunday grow.

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Friday, November 19, 2010

Intense Day

What a day! On top of everything that happened, I'm sick, and I've had hardly any chance to lie down and take care of myself.

Jérémie has not returned. Paul called his father today. The father told us that Jérémie came back to his house saying we had refused to take him back. We were shocked! Paul told him that that was untrue, since Jérémie had never come back to us. So his father said he would send him to us again. I'm curious if and when he gets here.

We've had a lot of issues with our new driver. Today he demanded malaria medication from me, and I gave it to him. He was not happy. He said we have to pay for him to go to the hospital. Oh really! Now I was the one not happy.

Not only that, he keeps not doing his job, and not attending our services or prayer meetings. On Tuesday he simply did not show up for work. Yesterday he said he can't come to the prayer meeting. Today he came back from picking up the kids very late, and, without picking up Christian's birthday meal that we had ordered on the phone. He gave all kinds of excuses, left to drive there to pick it up, and came back empty-handed again, with lots of excuses. It was the last straw, and I fired him on the spot. I had intended to do so for weeks.

His 8-year-old son Yacouba spends the day at our place and goes to the Christian school where our kids go. He's part of our sponsorship program, and we'll have to keep him on until the end of the academic year.

I called Saloum (20) - our current day guard - and asked him to be our driver from now on. He's afraid to drive our little bus, so I'll have to do a driving session in our neighborhood with him; once I'm on my feet myself again. For now he can drive the car.

That means we need a new day guard. We could either take in one of the street children - there is one that deserves that chance - or have Joseph (17) fill that role.

Paul ran errands in town today. I asked him to put the special sun-protection-hat on that I bought him, and wear a long-sleeved shirt, but he refused. I guess he wants to have skin cancer. I've told him numerous time he won't get any compassion from me WHEN that day comes.

He had some problems with his errands, and called me quite a bit. Unfortunately I left the phone in the office, and went to bed because I was sick, and had to get up and go back and forth a few times, which was tiring and annoying.

There was also a big fight involving all our kids. It seems that 11-year-old Daouda is treated very badly by our own kids once they get to school. He stutters, and so kids are very cruel to him. We need to talk about this in our family meeting tonight, as that behavior is totally unacceptable for our own kids.

Christian's Birthday

It's hard to imagine that Christian is only turning 21 today. I made this chocolate cake for him. We gathered everyone in the living room, and then it was time to celebrate. We sang HAPPY BIRTHDAY to him twice when he came into the house, and then he blew out his candles. Great job, Christian!

We ate the cake, and then we handed him our presents. I had asked Paul to pick up Christian's lasagna on the way home, so I could surprise him that he'd get his birthday meal after all. The surprise succeeded!

Some of the kids drew pictures for Christian, some bought him pastry or bananas. Paul had a very special gift of a Malian key ring, and of a typical Malian instrument, the Korah. Awesome!

In Mali birthdays are not celebrated, so we're going against the culture in our household. Maybe that's also the reason why our birthday celebrations are over very quickly.

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Thursday, November 18, 2010

Weekly Prayer Meeting

Before our weekly prayer meeting, I tried to have a nice picture with my little kids taken, so I could put it on the back of my book. This is the result. While the kids look great, I don't like myself on it, so I ended up using one with only me on it after all.

I changed the layout of our meeting place, and decided to use the sound system so I could actually be heard above the kids' singin. It worked out pretty well.

As I was getting into the fast praise music, I suddenly thought of my flags back inside that I had not used in quite a long time. So I left to go get them, and I'm so glad I did! The kids loved using the flags! I actually got new flag material earlier this year; just have to get a sewing machine to make them.

After a time of worship, I had them go into groups, and they prayed fervently for the upcoming meetings with Cliff. I love this picture of the kids praying on the floor!

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Sunday, November 14, 2010

Christmas Presents for the Sponsors

Christmas is coming up, and it was time for the children to make their Christmas drawings for their sponsors. They have a hard time drawing freehand here, thinking it's not good enough. I don't know how to make them understand that everything they produce is good!

As for the little ones, I decided we'd do hand- and foot-prints. This is 2-year-old Jonathan who enjoyed doing it. As for 1-year-old Hawa, she screamed as if we were hurting her! It was quite a challenge. 8-months-old Casimir didn't know what was going on, and didn't make much fuss.

Now I can only hope that the drawings arrive in Europe in time, and that my friend can forward them to the sponsors right away. In any case, I scanned all the pictures in case the envelope gets lost in the mail. I never mail anything out of Mali!

This picture shows Fanta doing the dishes in my kitchen. It's a daily job of hers.

We filmed Hama walking by himself, and I put a series of little clips together and uploaded it to YouTube. Enjoy! He can now walk the whole length of the dining hall all alone!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wY2P-H1KhLc

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Saturday, November 13, 2010

Weekly Service

Coming soon.

Restaurant Visit

Coming soon.

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Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Personnel Problems

What a day! The challenges continue, but at least I wasn't all discouraged today. Yes, a lot of things are discouraging, but I just continue on doing my best, and that's all I can do.

We've been having problems with the night guard forever; in terms of his apathy and passivity. He's not doing his job, and it's taking his toll. Paul often does his job, or nobody does, and then it's chaotic. I spoke to him clearly tonight (once again), but if he doesn't change, we'll have to find someone else. Not easy with his whole family so integrated into our family.

The problems with the driver continue also. Yesterday he filled the car up, however, it was only three fourths full. We do not trust him, and now Paul always has to be present when he gets gas. Poor Paul, one more thing on his plate.

I wished I could find trustworthy people, but it seems a total impossibility. We'll just have to raise up our own kids!

Christian was doing the exercises with Hama this morning, and watching 8-month old Casimir at the same time.

I got a lot of administrative work done today which I love doing. I think administration is one of my strongest gifts, if not the strongest.

I also had a good time with the Lover of my soul this morning which is my number one need right now. I long to get out of this spiritual desert and back into fullness in Christ; I know it's up to me really. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak. I'm on the right track, though. Please keep praying.

Today the kids started drawing pictures for their sponsors at Christmas. Since I'm not traveling again this year, I have to figure out a way to get them to the sponsors. Maybe scan them?

At 8 pm we gathered first with the street children, and I read a martyr's story from JESUSFREAKS to them. Unfortunately the kids don't even listen!

Then we went into the living room for the family meeting. I write down who did their chores and who didn't. Then I do a little Bible quiz with them; another way to get points. I also pray a blessing over them all, and lay hands on each one of them. Then I hug each kid before they go to bed.

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Sunday, November 7, 2010

Eventful Day 2 Back

What a day Friday was! Abdias was provoked by a kid in school, then ran after him, and the kid stumbled, fell, and broke his arm. Paul was called to police because of it, and then went to the school, and had to take the kid to the hospital. We have to pay all the medical expenses - at a time when we have no money.

And then the school director put fear of the child's father into us, telling us how he's already taken teachers to the police and accused them. However, him and Paul dropped the kid off at home after the hospital and profusely apologized, and the father accepted the apology.

In the morning, Paul went to the car paper office to see whether the permanent papers for the bus were there. They weren't quite ready yet. In the afternoon, the temporary bus papers were seized by police because they were expired. Paul was able to get them back without paying.

It was a LONG day of not knowing how things would work out, and really overwhelmed me. Not only that, but also finding so many things broken or dirty or out of order... it's time for some OLDER helpers instead of teens and twens! And the same old problems as ever... sigh.

I think after 7 years of repeating myself, I have nothing left in me. Unfortunately I was not "restored" or rejuvenated, re-envisioned or encouraged on this past US trip. I simply do not know what the solution is. Though I expect a lot of good changes when the American family moves here in April. I guess I'll have to survive until then.

On the upside, I enjoyed playing a new card game with the kids.

Saturday

Instead of our service, everyone went to a YWAM worship event in town - that is except for me. In the morning we mounted the two new magnets I brought back with me onto the bus. Now everyone can see this is our bus; hopefully that's a good thing.

Our group arrived at the worship meeting on time - and filled up all the chairs (see picture). In the course of the meeting all the other chairs filled up as well. I was told they enjoyed it, and Fanta even danced. That's unheard of!

Later I got to play another new ( Christian) game with the children, and enjoyed our time together.

Again, I was hit with many frustrations throughout the day. For example, our night guard not doing his job.

Coming back to Mali is always difficult, and it takes me time to settle back in. On Wednesday we started our 3-week fast leading up to our conference and 6th anniversary at the end of the month. I don't know how much that plays into my (no so) well-being. In any case, I have strong doubts I can keep it up to the end.

The kids fast a meal a day, unless they want to do more. For some of them it's really hard, but I'm proud of them for trying.

Sunday

Another day like the previous ones. Paul went to Goro this morning, our village church 2 hours away from here. He took a few of our boys with him.

In the afternoon, everyone except Paul and myself went to the worship meeting again. It was the last one.

In the morning, Abdias asked me to show him how to iron, and so I decided it was time for him to learn. I also called Fanta over, so she could learn it as well. Abdias did a got job, however, it took him HOURS to iron 4 piece of clothing! Some of the other kids were also watching with curiosity.

This picture shows Sarata (5) and Jonathan (2) getting on our little slide.

Please pray for ALL of us. Paul is sick once again (he's not taking care of himself), and Christian is sick far too often as well. I feel like we're just barely surviving, trying to make it through each day, but we're a far cry from thriving.

I mentioned to Paul today that just maybe this new family coming is meant to REPLACE me for a season. Someone actually suggested that to me before returning to Mali. The thing is, it's hard being here, but it's also hard not being here, so there doesn't seem to be a way...

Only God has the answer!

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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Crossing The Atlantic Ocean

We took off from Detroit around 10:30 pm, but only after the police had come on board and excorted a lady off the plane. What was that all about?

I was excited when I saw that they had the movie on board that I had wanted to see in the theaters, and didn't get to - INCEPTION. So I immediately started watching it - and I really liked it. I also enjoyed my Air France meal.

The movie was quite long, but I still started a second one out of curiosity. I soon got pretty tired and turned the screen off, trying to get a nap in.

While the seats in this new class are bigger and quite comfortable, they do not tilt back, just slide down a little which doesn't help at all when you want to sleep. So it wasn't that easy; however the seat to my left was empty, and so I could make good use of the armrest. I barely slept though.

An hour before arrival they served us "breakfast". At 11 am local time we touched down in Paris. I had over 5 hours until my next flight. I went through security once again, and went to the frequent flyer lounge where I settled down for the next few hours. I tried to connect to the internet, but it simply would not work. The lady told me to sit in a certain area where the internet is better, and I eventually moved there when I found an empty seat - still not internet. A while later the crowd suddenly disappeared, and then the internet finally worked. I guess too many people had been connected at once.

I also talked to both my Mom and my brother - the traditional calls I always make when in transit in Paris. I found out that my second nephew due Dec 13th has a name already - Christopher.

Now I'm off to my gate to board the plane to Bamako! Keep praying for FAVOR upon my arrival; no hassle from customs or anyone else!

Crossing The Sahara

I was the first in line to get on board the plane. They gave me a new boarding pass; once again I was sitting in the new premium economy class, better than economy but not as good as business. And once again I gave my posters to a flight attendant for save storage.

This time I sat by the window, with a person next to me. The flight was just over 5 hours long. I watched a movie, enjoyed my last meal, and got a little nap in. At 8:40 pm we landed in Bamako.

One last time I heaved my carry-on down from the overhead bin, and recovered my posters. I then had to carry everything down the staircase they had rolled up to the plane, and into the bus that took us the few meters to the terminal building.

I always fill the immigration form out in advance, and take a new one when I leave or arrive for that purpose, but this time I simply could not find it. So I had to take the form there at the terminal the same way everybody else did, and fill it out standing there. I was still pretty far in front of the line when I went through, and had another stamp added to the many in my passport.

I was standing in a totally new arrival hall. They've been working on improving the airport, and things change constantly now. There was plenty of room, and a long baggage carroussel. I knew I needed a porter this time, and found one who spoke only Bambara with, and so I complied. I had to wait for a while, but then all my three bags were among the first ones out; one of the advantages of being a frequent flyer.

I was happy that I was among the first to leave the airport. But first, the dreaded customs.

To my amazement, they have not put up the x-ray machine in this new building yet. Wow! So the custom official pulled me to the side just because he saw the box. He asked me what was inside, so I started listing a few things. He asked me to open it. I then said it's for a children's center, and suddenly he told me to just go. Praise God!

I was happy that everything had worked out so well; thanks to quite a few people praying for this trip!

I saw Paul and Christian right away, and together we made our way to the car. The porter was not happy about the amount I gave him, though it was more I usually give them.

I was the one driving us home, and we had a good time talking in the car. It was so good to be back home!

Our dog Uppy greeted me with more enthusiasm than anyone else, and my cat was really happy too. The kids were all asleep unfortunately, and I knew I had to wait until they'd get back from school tomorrow.

Since I had a lot of chocolates in my bags everywhere - for my kids' advent calendar and for Christmas - I asked Christian to help me unpack, and he did. That way it got done much faster, and everything that melts or needed refrigeration was put into the fridge.

It was really hot - I always feel it more when I first arrive - but it was bearable, and I was looking forward to a long night of sleeping.

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Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Leaving Kansas City

I got up after 7 hours of sleep this morning, and was pretty tired. I had my last cup of tea over here, and my last breakfast, and got to talk to Christian for a few minutes. I went to the post office to mail receipts to our office, and wrote my last emails. I finished up packing, and took this picture of all the stuff.

A box of 51 pounds - $200.
A bag of 52 pounds.
A bag of 72 pounds - expected $100.
A very heave carry-on bag.
A computer bag.
A huge rolled up world map.

This is much more than I usually take with me, and I knew it would not be an easy trip because of all the carry-on stuff. I'm glad my host loaded it all into his van - thank God!

At 11:30 am I left the house for the last time, and drove to Lee's Summit to meet a good friend at Applebee's. It was our only chance to get together. I had my "last supper" and greatly enjoyed it. I also enjoyed talking to my friend, though time was so short.

I had to leave just before 2 pm to get to the local rental agency by 2, which wasn't too far away. I returned the car, and my host and friend Bill was already waiting for me in his van, with all my stuff inside. We then drove about 40 minutes to the airport. It was nice to get to talk finally, since he only got back yesterday.

We unloaded everything at check-in, and he was so nice to leave to go park the car and come back and help me. A few minutes later he came back - with the car. To my amazement, the short-term parking right there was FULL. Wow. So he was so kind to carry my stuff inside right to the check-in counter, while I waited at the car. They don't want cars to park there, or even stop for longer. He then said he would wait in the car, and circle if necessary. I wanted to add the receipt for the excess baggage to an envelope ready to be mailed to our office. Since Bill has lots of experience taking boxes with him, I was also hoping for his help at the check-in if necessary.

I was the only one at the frequent flyer check-in - and that included the agent. Thankfully someone came a while later. The lady looked annoyed and not very friendly. Great! She barely talked and just went through the motions. She told me immediately that the third bag was $200, and I paid for it. Then I heaved the other two bags up to the scale, and she simply put the tags on. She never asked for more payment for excess baggage, and didn't even say anything when the bag was two pounds over with 72 pounds. I guess she just wanted it over with. I received my boarding passes, and was done.

I went back out to the curb to say good-bye to Bill, and give him the envelope. Thank God for people like him!

I went to security where there were hardly any people. That's Kansas City! I was thankful to be the only one at the security on my side, as I have two laptops, and the rolled up wall maps, and it's quite a hassle. I had to heave the heavy carry-on bag up onto the security band.

As I proceeded myself, I noticed that this was actually a body scanner. I had to take my watch off and lift my arms up and stand there for 5 seconds. This was my first time!

When I got out, the lady there told me she needed to pat me down. I don't know WHAT she saw on there! She padded me down, and went with her hands all around the rim of my jeans. Maybe it looked suspicious on the screen?

I didn't really care. I had two hours until my flight, and was just glad this was all working out fine. I had to buy some water - no water fountains after security - and sat down at my gate. They hardly have any outlets at this airport, but I got lucky. So I plugged in my computer to take advantage of having time and having a free internet connection. And that's where I am now.

I'm amazed to realize that my arms are hurting ALREADY because my carry-on is so heavy. And I haven't even taken one flight yet!

The plane left Kansas City on time to go to Detroit. I have not seen a domestic flight this empty in the US in a long time! My whole row was empty, two seats on one side and five on the other. At first I was reading a new book, but then I got tired, and lay down across the two seats. Finally, I moved to the other side with the three seats. Unfortunately by then there wasn't much time left. Still, I was thankful.

Arriving in Detroit, I realized that my gate was not too far away, AND I had plenty of time, about 90 minutes, until boarding. So I made my way to the Delta lounge where I settled down, at first to read. Then I talked to Dawn in Wichita to find out how her second day at the clinic went. That way time was passing by fast, and I was not bored even without turning my computer on.

I walked to my gate, and thought I'd ask whether there is any way I could get an upgrade to business class, maybe in return for miles. He said no, but I was given an upgrade to the new class Air France has implemented; it's between economy and business class, and I sat in there on the way to America as well, but I'm not very impressed honesty. Too bad I don't get business class updates any more.

I did not have to wait very long until boarding started. I gave my rolled up wall posters to a flight attendant to put in their closet where it stays in good shape. Then I found my seat - the first row in that new class. I don't like first row, because you can't keep your bag with you since there is no seat in front of you.

I had the challenge of putting my very heavy bag in the overhead bin. I was worried when I saw how high the bins in this big plane (Airbus 330) were. It took all my strength to put the bag on my head, but the bins were still quite a bit higher, and I gave it my all. A guy standing there helped me heave it in, and I was thankful. I don't think he really realized how heavy it was.

I settled into my new seat with a complementary TIME magazine that I had finished by the time we took off from Detroit airport - on time.

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Monday, November 1, 2010

Hansa Center

It was 2 am before I went to bed last night - too late. My alarm went off at 8:15 am. I had a hard time getting up, made myself some tea and breakfast, and packed back up. I had to say good-bye to my friend Karen, and at 9:15 am I left her house to drive to the clinic/hotel.

I found my friend Dawn in her hotel room, ready to go to the clinic. I tried to help her getting connected to the internet, and while it didn't seem to work, it did. Then we slowly walked out the exit closest to her room, crossed the street, and walked into the clinic.

It was great being back at that place where both Paul and I have found so much help. Dawn had some paperwork left to do, and sat down to take care of it. She wasn't doing so great, but I can't wait to see her doing worlds better in two weeks' time!

Dr. David came out and I got to say hello; unfortunately he didn't have time to talk any more than that. I took care of the payment details, and then it was time to say good-bye again.

Kansas City

It was about 10:30 am when I got into my car to start the 3-hour drive to Kansas City. Thankfully I had some teaching CDs I hadn't listened to yet. I got really tired after a while, but the CDs helped. At 1:30 pm I arrived at my hosts' house in Lone Jack.

Twenty minutes later I had to leave again to meet with Jerry. A mutual friend connected the two of us, because he's an electrician and could possibly come to Mali to help us. The conversation was very positive, and there is a good chance he'll come to Mali before the end of the year. Hopefully it works out.

I then had my last errand to run - going to the bank - and returned home. I continued packing. The challenge was to get my one suitcase under 50 pounds, and the other one not over 70 pounds. I finished the third one - a 50-pound box - and closed it up. The third bag costs $200 at the airport, and the 70-pound bag $100. I didn't get the suitcases finished by the time I left the house to go to a prayer meeting.

The meeting was from 7 to 9 pm at somebody's house. Most of the time was spent praying for the American elections tomorrow which is understandable. A few prayers were spoken for me as well.

I drove back home, and talked to Dawn on the phone. She had a good first day, and sounded really great and upbeat. I'm excited for her. If any of you would like to help with the expenses for Dawn that we as a ministry have committed to taking care if, that would be very much appreciated. Right now, the ministry has a debt of a few thousand dollars as donations have been low, and expenses high, and there are more on the horizon.

I'm hoping to get to bed before 2 am tonight, as I'm traveling tomorrow. That's only an hour away!

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