Sunday, May 23, 2010

Ring Those Bells
We have been here in Mago for about a week now and Janet has had us painting, of course this was after a day of settling in. She (Janet) is anxious to get the sewing class down in their classroom for the class is more than twice the size as it was last year and is bursting at the seams (pardon the pun). We have eight of these girls staying here on campus and their little house is also quite crowded, so Janet is turning one of our classrooms into a dorm room until the girl’s dorm is completed. She is asking me to be the dean which is going to be a new experience – not necessarily deaning, but deaning to non English speaking girls. We will see how it works out.
A friend of ours, Sally Smith, who works at EVI in Colorado purchased and donated some (13 colored bells) for a kids bell choir here in Africa. Would you believe the first Sabbath in Mago we had special music with 4 of the village people playing them. It was so good to see. Samuel, one of the boys from TX plays bells at church back home and he was a great help in directing us, he also played with the village people that first Sabbath. We are going to let the Africans take it from here with some direction and I think they will do well. They seem to be enthusiastic about it. Theresa has been also teaching some English, health, and will be teaching cross stitch and embroidery to the girls while she is here.
The fundis which we had here last year is busy at Kibidula building an addition to a primary school and also they will be building a church; so they won’t be here until they finish with their work there. This is fine for we really do have plenty of work to do with the painting that needs to be done. Janet has the window glass and doors for the school on order and cushions for the sofas at her house on order. Things are shaping up.
Along with the painting of the school Theresa and I painted Janet’s kitchen. It is a peach color on two walls and a lighter peach color on the other two walls. The cook is back to cooking over an open fire until we are done. Janet wants the cupboards to be built before going back to cooking on the cook stove, so hopefully that will happen soon also, but she has said that the painting is priority.
The rainy season appears to be over, but we have had more clouds than sun since being here. We have had a few sprinkles but nothing more than a few minutes here and there. The days are warm when the sun is out – probably in the 70’s but when there are clouds maybe upper 50’s to low 60’s.
I am typing this on the 23th and hope to get it posted later today or tomorrow. Not sure how often I will be able to blog, but will be typing ahead of time so that I can copy and paste it into the blog so that I don’t take too much of the internet time.
Hope this finds everyone well and praising the Lord. There has been a song that keeps coming into my mind every day and I wish the promises it has in it for each one of you. I sing it daily, sometimes too often I think, but it is a promise from the Bible – Isaiah 41:10. I am sure we all know it and it promises of strength, help and the presents of God in our lives. This is my prayer for each one of you. Thank you for your prayers, God is good in sustaining us and teaching us to be content where He has us working.

Correction from last blog. Theresa’s two sons is Jarus and Samuel not Jarod and Samuel. Sorry!

That is it for now from Mago, Tanzania
Deniece
Ring Those Bells
We have been here in Mago for about a week now and Janet has had us painting, of course this was after a day of settling in. She (Janet) is anxious to get the sewing class down in their classroom for the class is more than twice the size as it was last year and is bursting at the seams (pardon the pun). We have eight of these girls staying here on campus and their little house is also quite crowded, so Janet is turning one of our classrooms into a dorm room until the girl’s dorm is completed. She is asking me to be the dean which is going to be a new experience – not necessarily deaning, but deaning to non English speaking girls. We will see how it works out.
A friend of ours, Sally Smith, who works at EVI in Colorado purchased and donated some (13 colored bells) for a kids bell choir here in Africa. Would you believe the first Sabbath in Mago we had special music with 4 of the village people playing them. It was so good to see. Samuel, one of the boys from TX plays bells at church back home and he was a great help in directing us, he also played with the village people that first Sabbath. We are going to let the Africans take it from here with some direction and I think they will do well. They seem to be enthusiastic about it. Theresa has been also teaching some English, health, and will be teaching cross stitch and embroidery to the girls while she is here.
The fundis which we had here last year is busy at Kibidula building an addition to a primary school and also they will be building a church; so they won’t be here until they finish with their work there. This is fine for we really do have plenty of work to do with the painting that needs to be done. Janet has the window glass and doors for the school on order and cushions for the sofas at her house on order. Things are shaping up.
Along with the painting of the school Theresa and I painted Janet’s kitchen. It is a peach color on two walls and a lighter peach color on the other two walls. The cook is back to cooking over an open fire until we are done. Janet wants the cupboards to be built before going back to cooking on the cook stove, so hopefully that will happen soon also, but she has said that the painting is priority.
The rainy season appears to be over, but we have had more clouds than sun since being here. We have had a few sprinkles but nothing more than a few minutes here and there. The days are warm when the sun is out – probably in the 70’s but when there are clouds maybe upper 50’s to low 60’s.
I am typing this on the 23th and hope to get it posted later today or tomorrow. Not sure how often I will be able to blog, but will be typing ahead of time so that I can copy and paste it into the blog so that I don’t take too much of the internet time.
Hope this finds everyone well and praising the Lord. There has been a song that keeps coming into my mind every day and I wish the promises it has in it for each one of you. I sing it daily, sometimes too often I think, but it is a promise from the Bible – Isaiah 41:10. I am sure we all know it and it promises of strength, help and the presents of God in our lives. This is my prayer for each one of you. Thank you for your prayers, God is good in sustaining us and teaching us to be content where He has us working.

Correction from last blog. Theresa’s two sons is Jarus and Samuel not Jarod and Samuel. Sorry!

That is it for now from Mago, Tanzania
Deniece

Friday, May 7, 2010

Africa At Last!

We (Theresa and her two sons, Jerod and Samuel) arrived this Friday morning at 7:00 in Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania, Africa. God was merciful for safety on our travels. Janet was waiting for us. She arrived here yesterday and had to do some business on Friday after our pickup so we are staying through Saturday night at the YMCA in Dar. Right now we are in an internet cafe in Dar right next to the "Y" and I thought I might as well write a short blog being that I am here and I don't know when I will be able to get one posted once I get to Mago.

It is hot and humid in Dar today but should cool down some by evening. There was some flooding yet here in Dar so the rainy season has not ended yet.

Sunday morning we will catch the bus for Kibidula at 5:30 am. In Kibidula we will get Janet's truck and leave to go home shortly after that.

Again, I praise the Lord for His watch care and His love that He shines along our path to reasure us of His direction and guidance. May He show you too, the same for you as you look to Him daily.

Signing off for now in Dar,

Deniece

Africa At Last!