August and September

September is quickly turning the pages towards October.  Sometimes it feels like if you blink too long when you open your eyes back up another month has passed.  This week marks our 12^th week here in South Africa.   In some ways that is hard to believe in other ways it feels like we have been here even longer. 

In the past few weeks we had the blessing of having my dad and another family friend in our home.  We called them our mini Work & Witness Team.  They were here to help out with a couple projects on the region, including remodeling one of the guest flats here in our complex.  They helped turn what was essentially a studio flat into a two bedroom flat.  They also worked on building a wall in one of the offices at the Africa Regional Office.  It was a blessing to have them in our home and to get to share meals together as well as lots of conversation and laughter.  Here a few pictures of our time together. 

The Mini W&W team with Cicso and Jeffery, two of the other guys working on the project. 

We were able to take a day and go to Lion and Rhino Park here in Jo’berg and got to see all kinds of animals; which was a lot of fun.  While the guys were here we went to a nearby nature reserve to hike and this has turned into a Sunday afternoon tradition.   The guys were also able to work on a work-bench for Joe. Here is a picture of Joe in his “Man-Cave”  And they helped to tame our backyard jungle. 

While the guys were working on their projects I had a project of my own.  I was working on entering statistic for the churches and districts of the Africa South Field.  Each morning when I logged into the program it would tell me what percentage I was at.  It was a great thing to see when the percentage reached 100% after several weeks of work.

Last week we were able to spend some time at the Nazarene Theological College here in Johannesburg.  It was a blessing to be able to spend some time with the students and faculty there.  We were also able to share in their chapel service about how God was working in our lives and some ways that they can get involved in what is happening on the Africa South Field and in missions.  It is amazing to see how God is work in the hearts and lives of His people.

This week we are working preparing for the upcoming Work & Witness team, continuing to work on getting the Field Office set up, and working on a few projects at home.   Joe painted a few walls in our flat as well as worked on a raised bed for our garden.  I was able to plant some potted plants.  We are excited to see what “fruits” we get from our vegetable garden. 

Before                                                                            After

Until Next time remember – when making a freezer meal and mixing the ingredients in a gallon freezer bag it is important to make sure that the bag is securely closed otherwise the contents of the bag end up on the kitchen counter… L