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FAMILY CHRISTMAS

Mali also had a Corona lockdown during the holidays, closing all the restaurants. For that reason we could not go to a restaurant with all our sponsored kids and workers as usual. Instead, we found someone who cooked the chickens and fries for us, while we bought our own drinks, which is cheaper anyway. We then all gathered on our base to eat and celebrate together. Everyone said the food was better than ever, so it looks like we found a new tradition.

Before we put the babies to bed, we brought them over so everyone could see them. It was great to see everyone, as there are some non-resident kids we see rarely. The greatest surprise was to see my grown-up son Fousseni, who wanted to surprise me. He was one of the first three street children I took in in 2006 and is a great testimony and success story.

We put the little ones to bed, and then everyone gathered in our living room to celebrate. We talked about the significance of Christmas, sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus and prayed together. Then we lit each other's sparklers, passing on the fire, like Jesus has done with us and still does today.

Then we finally got to what everyone was waiting for - presents. One after another came forward, opening a gift, choosing a chocolate off the Christmas tree, and picking the person who'd get their gift next. There was a lot of joy as eyes lit up when they opened their gifts.

In the very end, we woke up the little ones. They were pretty sleepy, wondering what was going on, as I helped them each to open their gifts. Then everyone left, and they went back to bed.

KIDS CHRISTMAS PARTY

Last year we had nearly 600 children come to our Christmas Party, a new record. This year we knew we'd have to do things differently because of the government's Corona regulations, one being that no more than 50 people were allowed to gather.

This year between 700 and 800 children came. We handed out numbers, letting in 50 kids at the time. Paul did a song, preached the gospel, and prayed a prayer of commitment with them. Then they each received a pair of shoes and a drink, and once the food was ready, they could return to get a bowl of food to take with them. Once a group of 50 had left, the next group came in, and we started all over again. Paul had to preach the gospel over and over again, instead of having everyone come in at the same time and preaching once. It was more work, but it worked.

We only had 450 shoes and drinks to give away; next time we'd like to double that number so that everybody can get a pair of shoes. We're so thankful to CCARA, a German NGO, who has been helping financially to purchase shoes for the past few years, as well as to everyone of you who made it possible for us to put on this party and provide food, drinks and candy. Having preached 9 times, and with all the shoes gone, Paul decided to go outside our gate and preach one more time to all the children waiting to get in. Then they started distributing the food to everyone who wanted it, giving them individual disposable plastic bowls we had taken to Mali with us.

Paul had alerted the authorities in advance to our Christmas Party and how we were complying with the regulations. And sure enough, a good number of neighbors, whose children had received gifts, went to the authorities to accuse us of breaking the rules and try to get us into trouble, which led to nowhere thanks to Paul's foresight. What matters is that up to 800 children have heard the good news and had an opportunity to start a relationship with Jesus. Maybe in 10 or 20 years we'll have neighbors who are favorable towards us.

CHRISTMAS IN THE VILLAGES

We took another 500 pairs of shoes we bought to the villages of Sebela and Dara, as well as a few hundred toys. We had never done a distribution in Sebela, the village we have shared many testimonies about recently, and the people there were extremely thankful. Many children had never owned a toy before. We could have brought a few more hundred shoes with us to distribute, and hopefully we can do so next time.

In the past, we had done our Christmas shoe distribution in Dara, and when they heard we were going to Sebela instead this year, they were disappointed, so we decided to bring them shoes as well. When Paul went to buy another 300 pairs of shoes at the shop we always get them at, the owner happened to be there. Paul told him what we were doing, and it turned out that he was actually born and raised in Dara. He was so impressed that he gave Paul another 100 pairs of shoes for free.

Paul decided to bring the shoes to Dara as a surprise to avoid having too many children, but the news still spread, and 800 children were there hoping for shoes or toys, when he arrived. Our local leader who knows everyone helped choose the 400 children who'd get the shoes, who were very thankful. And of course not only all those children but also many adults heard the good news and had an opportunity to receive Jesus, whose birth we were celebrating with our gifts, as their Lord and Savior.

OUR TIME IN MALI

We arrived in Mali on December 10th, after spending one night in Paris. It was challenging traveling with 3 toddlers, and I don't know what we would have done without Barbara. Not just during the trip, but she was a huge blessing during the whole month in Mali. It would have been so much harder without her. She helped with the children all day long, playing with them, cooking and feeding them. The children were her only mission, and she put everything she had into that mission, blessing everyone in the process. I have asked her to write a few lines about her experience that you can read here. Maybe it will inspire you to come with us next time. As of now, we're hoping to travel back to Mali in summer. Could YOU be the one to come with us then?

The little ones greatly enjoyed having all those Malian children as playmates. And they were already changing the culture. 12-year-old Jonathan had refused to even hold his 4-month-old brother Amaga, saying that's for women. Well, he ended up being one of those children spending the most time with the triplets, playing with them, and started also holding and helping with his little brother.

Another way they changed culture was their interaction with Randy. In Mali fathers beat their wives and children, and I witnessed a 3-year-old trying to keep Emmy from going to Randy. In amazement the Malians, young and old, saw Randy spend all this time with his children, taking care of them, playing with them, cuddling with them, and changing diapers, and only time will tell how much of a difference that has made. The 3-year-old realized that Randy was not going to punish his son for approaching him, but receive him with open arms.

Besides their Malian playmates, it's the animals that our little ones loved most. We have two cats in our house there, and all day long they were looking for the cats and talking about the cats, and trying to touch the cats. It was so much fun! And they were constantly looking for the three sheep living on our base who frequently walked by our house, so they loved looking out the door and windows. The words "kake" (cat) and "ba" (sheep) were their most frequent and clear words.

The only thing that dampened our time in Mali was their health. They went from eating mainly baby food jars to ONLY eating regular food. After a few days they started having diarrhea, and they ended up having it for 3 weeks. Then they all vomited the same night, and a few days later Tammy vomited all day long and was really in bad shape. We were in touch with a missionary doctor who finally prescribed them antibiotics at that time, which in the end took care of the problem. By the time we were flying back to Austria, they were about over it, and now that they've been here for nearly two weeks and have eaten A LOT, they are gaining weight nicely again.

Tamara day 506                 Samuel day 505                Emmanuel day 506

NEW CHILDREN

Korotoumou's husband died in a motorcar accident in October of 2020, leaving her alone with 6 children. Her landlord then kicked her and her children out of their home. They found an abandoned house and simply moved in. They had not eaten anything for three days when somebody told them about us, so she decided to find our base and talked to Paul. Paul went to her home to verify her story, and gave her a bag of rice. Because of their dire situation, the children also had to stop going to school. They started coming to our church, and Korotoumou and some of her children received Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Now we would like to make it possible for her children to return to school.

Nousso (19)                 Aminata (14)                 Douty (10)

SPONSORED          SPONSORED               SPONSOR NEEDED

Kadia's husband died in 2019, leaving her alone with 6 children. Unable to continue paying for their schooling, all her children had to drop out of school. Kadia started coming to our church and received Jesus as her Lord and Savior. Now we would like to make it possible for her children to return to school.

Souleymane (23)                 Fatoumata (17)   

SPONSOR NEEDED                 SPONSORED

Salimata (14)                 Cathérine (10)   

SPONSORED                SPONSORED

Our 10-year-old Casimir, Paul's half-brother has also lost one of his half-sponsors and is looking for someone who will support him with $30 or 25€ per month.

Contact me if you would like to sponsor any of these children. A sponsorship is $60 or 50€ a month; half-sponsorships are also possible.

QUICK NEWS

•        Daily Blog - If you are not on Facebook but would still like to read my daily blog about our life, including pictures, you can do so on our website. Go to https://h2tni.org/blog/.

•        The Triplets - Austria has extended their Corona lockdown, so the little ones have still not been able to finish their swim class, and the start of their dance class has been postponed. Samuel goes to physiotherapy every week, and he has just been fitted with leg braces for the night. He is also getting a special seat so he can sit and develop his hands' motor skills. Please pray for his complete physical restoration, that he'll be able to sit and walk.

•        January Expenses - School is starting again next Monday, and with that we have to pay the next installment of school fees. We also have to enroll the 7 new children in our sponsorship program in school, and get birth certificates for them. Finally, January is the time we have many once-a-year expenses, which makes this a month of a lot additional expenses. Thank you for supporting us not just in prayer, but also in giving.

•        Security Situation - Since the coup, and then the interim government put in place, things in the capital have calmed down, though many do not like to see so much military in government positions. Jihadists continue attacking military and UN installations, as well as villages, and now the French are considering reducing the number of troops they have in Mali. Thank you for praying for the country and our protection.

•        Permit & Title - The Lord just amazed us big time when we received a special donation to continue with the construction of our fourth building that we're planning to start our elementary school in. Paul has been really busy working on getting our title and the building permit, which is connected, but with corruption, and the coup causing a change of people in positions, it's been really challenging. He has a new connection and is very hopeful that we'll get them soon. Please pray.

•        Malian Director Paul - Paul was rejuvenated by our visit, and we greatly enjoyed having those few weeks together. Please continue praying for him, as he has even more on his plate right now, with school starting up again and the new sponsored children.

•        First-Grade Teacher - We are still looking for a French-speaking first grade teacher to join our team. There is such a need for a good, Christian school where the children are treated with dignity and learn something. Many of our Muslim neighbors would send their children to our school. Please pray we'll find a teacher!

•       Volunteers - Do you want to come change an orphan's life? Do you want to heal the sick? Preach the gospel to those who've never heard? Come to Mali for a season and let God change your life. No language skills needed, but French skills are helpful.

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. (Luke 2:1)

Amazed by HIM,

Claudia (& Randy)