Hark! the Herald Angels Sing

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new born King;

Peace on earth, and mercy mild,

God and sinners reconciled!"

Joyful, all ye nations, rise;

Join the triumph of the skies;

With angelic hosts proclaim,

Christ is born in Bethlehem!

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new born King!"

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Christ, by highest heav'n adored;

Christ the everlasting Lord;

Come, Desire of Nations come,

Fix in us Thy humble home.

Veiled in flesh, the Godhead see;

Hail th'Incarnate Deity;

Pleased as man with men to dwell,

Jesus our Immanuel!

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the new born King!"

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Hail the heav'n born Prince of Peace!

Hail the Sun of Righteousness!

Light and life to all He brings,

Ris'n with healing in His wings:

Mild He lays His glory by,

Born that man no more may die:

Born to raise the sons of earth,

Born to give them second birth!

Hark! the herald angels sing,
"Glory to the new born King!"

by Charles Wesley

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This is one of my favorite Christmas Carols, expressing all that God has done through His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour and calling us to join in the triumph of praise in the skies. May we do so this Christmas and each day of our lives!

Gardening

One pot became four! I was at Dinuba Raisin Day's Women Luncheon in September and was one of the recipients of a door price -- a pot of plants! After a week of enjoying it inside I decided it was time to transplant (before the plants die from clastrophobia). And this is what I now have -- four growing plants. The ivy is really extending its vines and might need to be transplanted again --in the spring. The orange flowered suculant is fading.

I must admit that when they started to draw the names for the prizes I was praying "please Lord, could I win a price". God was very kind & gracious in hearing and answering my prayer (that had underlying tones of self-pity.)

Besides these plants I have some outside my bedroom window that I keep nurturing. We'll see what winter does to them. I'm also learning how to care for the six roses bushes we have. There's one long stem red rose bush that has the best fragrance. Those I'm quick to clip and put in a vase inside.

Twenty One Questions by John Wesley

Awhile back I came across these questions. Thought provoking.

1. Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
2. Am I honest in all my acts and words, or do I exaggerate?
3. Do I confidentially pass on to another what was told to me in confidence?
4. Can I be trusted?
5. Am I am a slave to dress, friends, work or habits?
6. Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?
7. Did the Bible live in me today?
8. Do I give it time to speak to me every day?
9. Am I enjoying prayer?
10. When did I last speak to someone else of my faith?
11. Do I pray about the money I spend?
12. Do I get to bed on time and get up on time?
13. Do I disobey God in anything?
14. Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?
15. Am I defeated in any part of my life?
16. How do I spend my spare time?
17. Am I proud?
18. Do I thank God that I am not as other people?
19. Is there anyone I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold a resentment toward or disregard? If so what am I doing about It?
20. Do I grumble or complain constantly?
21. Is Christ Real to me?

Thoughts from My Utmost for His Highest.

I continue to read My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers most days. Recently there seemed to be a common theme and a good reminder coming through –being rightly related to God. Here are some of those thoughts:

Aug 4: The main thing about Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the atmosphere produced by that relationship. That is all God asks us to look after, and it is the one thing that is being continually assailed.

Aug 30: Don’t rejoice in successful service, but rejoice because you are rightly related to Me. The snare in Christian work is to rejoice in successful service, to rejoice in the fact that God has used you. You never can measure what God will do through you if you are rightly related to Jesus Christ. Keep your relationship right with Him, then whatever circumstances you are in, and whoever you meet day by day, He is pouring rivers of living water through you and it is of His mercy that He does not let you know it. When once you are rightly related to God by salvation and sanctification, remember that wherever you are, you are put there by God; and by the reaction of your life on the circumstances around you, you will fulfill God’s purpose, as long as you keep in the light as God is in the light.

Aug 31: “That My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” John 15:11 The joy of Jesus was the absolute self-surrender and self-sacrifice of Himself to His Father, the joy of doing that which the Father sent Him to do. “I delight to do Thy will.” . . . Be rightly related to God, find your joy there, and out of you will flow rivers of living water. Be a centre for Jesus Christ to pour living water through.

Sept 1: “You shall be holy; for I am holy.” I Peter 1:16 Continually restate to yourself what the purpose of your life is. The destined end of man/woman is not happiness, nor health, but holiness. Nowadays we have far too many affinities, we are dissipated with them; right, good, noble affinities which will yet have their fulfillment, but in the meantime God has to atrophy them. The one thing that matters is whether a man/woman will accept the God who will make him/her holy. At all costs a woman/man must be rightly related to God.

PS

Mom informs me that the poem I read at Chris & Jeff's wedding was read at Mom & Dad's wedding by Chris. Not certain if we can find the actual poem.

My Aunt Chris

In February, when I was beginning to recover from my hepatitis, my aunt Chris was struggling with jaundice. I recovered. My Aunt Chris recovered too. On August 5 she entered into the presence of Jesus Christ, our Lord & Savior. She has been made whole. How beautiful!

I have thought a lot about her during these last few months and the memories she gave me. My first memory is when I was probably 6 years old on Christmas Day. My family went to grandma’s house. They all went inside. I stayed in the car with dad as he was taking me to the doctor’s. I was sick. But Aunt Chris came out to the car to say hello and wish me a Merry Christmas. I was touched by her kindness to come out to see me. I even had tears in my eyes. One never knows the impact they have on another person, especially a child, by the simple things that can be done.

Five years later she got married to Uncle Jeff. At their reception I got to recite a little poem. I have no idea what it was. I felt very special to be given that honor.

Sometime in high school she gave me a gift, maybe it was for my birthday. It was a New Topical Memory kit. Sixty key verses to be memorized. I did it. And I kept memorizing other verses, even chapters and reviewing them. Having those verses hidden in my heart has built an incredible foundation to my faith. I continue to review the verses (don’t ask me to quote any though). I have slowed way down on memorizing . . . But the verses remain a great source of encouragement in the journey of life.

In my last year of high school, she discipled me, doing a weekly Bible study together. When I graduated from BIOLA, Jeff & Chris gave me the devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. This too has been an invaluable tool in my journey of life. I have been reading it every since.

After nursing school, I moved up to Oregon and lived with them for six months. Once I got myself settled with a job and found a roommate I moved out. It was a hi-light of my life to live nearby, to be involved in each other’s lives. My uncle Jeff is really the one who pushed me into missions as he knew my keen interest. One day he asked me, “So what are you doing about this?” And I started to pursue missions.

One last story. Chris is my mom’s sister. Every year since who knows when, mom’s family has gone camping together in the summer. One year Chris joined us when she was on staff with the Navigators (a Christian Organization. And I thought she sat behind the pilots on airplanes directing them. I really truly did!). So in the evening we had gone out somewhere in an uncle’s pick-up, all piled in the bed of the truck. We passed the ranger at the entrance to the camp ground. He made some sort of comment to us. Aunt Chris’ response was, that’s okay, cause . . .then began singing:

Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before;

Every day with Jesus, I love Him more and more;

Jesus saves and keeps me, and He's the One I'm waiting for.

Every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.

There’s no more waiting for Aunt Chris.

Fura, the National Drink

Here Rabi is making fura for me to serve to visitors. This is a very typical drink that you’ll find in any home at anytime. If there’s no fura, then something is wrong. Fura is made with millet or sometimes with sorghum. The grain is pounded to a flour and mixed with water to make a dough. The ball of dough is place in boiling water for 20 minutes then it’s taken out and placed in the large wooden mortar to knead. The next step is to put it in the calabash with water and buttermilk and some spices. A large metal ladle is used to work it out into a liquid. Then it is ready to drink right out of the calabash with a large ladle or just simple pick up the bowl and drink. More water is added as needed. It really is quite tasty!

With my impending departure I thought it would be fun to have fura on hand to serve to people who come to bid me farewell. People in the village have been so kind to me, always serving fura and other foods too. After the harvest when we visit they again show their kindness by giving us some of what they have harvested: millet, peanuts, beans, dried green leaves, & sesame seeds.

MEET MARTIN

I’m Martin. I belong to Gen who’s gone away for a year. Then another family was looking after me and they went away too. Now it’s Jeannie who’s my care taker. She does a pretty good job although she forgets I’m a puppy (even if I just turned ONE) and would like to have at least 2 meals a day. But she is generous with the peanut balls and sometimes even meat scraps. Jeannie hasn’t been well for the last month and has to rest lots, so Huang Di and I keep her company during the day, sleeping at her feet or next to the fridge or under the table or on the mat in the living room. We can sleep the day away from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (if she lets us) not needing to go out and find a tree or bush. I also like to get wrapped up in the computer cord, but better be careful when I get up.

Four Hours is Way too Long Alone.
Awhile back I was following her to the office as I often do. She finished work and went out, locking up for the morning. Normally she doesn’t come back in the afternoon. Well, guess who she forgot in the office? Yep, me. That was a bit much and I don’t like to be left alone in a building, especially locked in. So I barked and barked and barked. But do you think anyone heard me? Not at the far west end of the compound. Nobody is around there. So I thought I’m going to have to do this on my own. I went for the door and tried to open it, only to eventually chewing and tearing the wooden handle off. That didn’t work so I walked around, went to her desk, put my paw print on a letter, I thought it needed another signature, made a mess in the doorway and pee-ed on the floor. The other option was the window which is screened from the inside. So I went at it and finally got the screen door on the window open, actually off. But I couldn’t master the window itself. So I had to wait 4 hours and finally she returned for some unknown reason. Oh what a relief!! And boy did she apology up and down and down and up for locking me in. That’ll never happen again.

PDI OFFICE

I was trying to think what I should write in this blog and decided to look at my most recent pictures taken. Pictures of the PDI (Programme de Developpement Integre or Integrated Development Program) office. This is where the team meets each morning for devotions and prays together.

We share the previous day’s events and make suggestions or comments that will hopefully help for the next visit to that village and the health workers. We have also been going through a book on two religions, one asking the other questions. It’s quite an eye opener for me, actually for all of us, to see the inconsistencies and the untruths in the one. Yet these are things that are not talked about or challenged openly. Anyway. . .we are usually in the office from 8 to 11. Then we go out to the villages in the afternoon. Although recently, since people are available in the late morning and early afternoons, we have changed the times to going out at 10. This is a nice schedule as we get back around 4 p.m. instead of coming in at 7 p.m. (But in fact, I have not gone to the villages in the last 3-4 weeks, that’s another story).

This is my ‘office’ with my desk and the computer. Note the dust, it’s part of the décor at Galmi.

Reasons & Enduring

With having said good-bye to friends this last week, I'm thinking of my own departure coming up in 5 months. This is my last term here until God directs otherwise. So I’m starting to do some clean-up around my desk, sorting some papers, and found some of my early prayer letters and a letter to the director regarding my future. Would you like to know why I have spent all these years here? Written 21 years ago, it's still my heart. Let me share part of it with you (written July 24, 1986):

The end of my short term is coming up in five months. I have had to do some serious consideration as to what I should do after this. Having been here already two years, having gone through the initial adjustments and struggles, having stated building relationships with the nationals, having a basis of the language, and having learned the work and my role as a nurse at G. H. I can’t see throwing all this away only to go somewhere else and start all over again. Through various things I have read in Scripture and books by Christian leaders, through what I have seen in the last two years of myself, and with lots of prayer, I have decided I would like to return for another term. It is difficult for me to say career. We take our life really one day at a time. I know my life is committed to the Lord, for His service, for life. As Eric Alexander said of Paul, he had two motives that formed his life and thinking: 1. for the praise of His glory, 2. for the sake of the Gentiles and a third one could be added –for life. II Timothy 2:10 also encourages me to continue here in this ministry. “For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen that they also may obtain salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.”

An Old Hymn

Old hymns are really beautiful. So poetic. Recently this has been one that I have decided to at least memorize the first verse. When I think of the love of Christ, without reason (unconditional), never-ending, that pulls me to Him, I am just amazed. He calls us to love one another in this way too. Do we do that? No. Well, we do try. But maybe too often we're pushing people away more than pulling them to us. I have been reading Everyone is Normal Till You Get to Know Them, by John Ortberg. This is a great book about learning to live in community. God has invited us into the Fellowship of the Trinity. Jesus has prayed that we may be one, just as the Father and He are one. He paid an enormous price for us to be admitted into this Unity --death on the cross. And how do we respond to this? How are our lives changed by being loved with everlasting love? How are other lives being changed? I'm learning much from this and having to check my motives and my actions.

Loved with everlasting love,
Led by grace that love to know;
Spirit, breathing from above,
Thou hast taught me it is so!
Oh, this full and perfect peace!
Oh, this transport all divine:
In a love which cannot cease,
I am His, and He is mine.

Heav’n above is softer blue,
Earth around is sweeter green!
Something lives in every hue
Christless eyes have never seen:
Birds with gladder songs o’erflow,
Flow’rs with deeper beauties shine,
Since I know, as now I know,
I am His and He is mine.

Things that once were wild alarms
Cannot now disturb my rest;
Closed in everlasting arms,
Pillowed on the loving breast.
Oh, to lie forever here,
Doubt, and care, and self resign,
While He whispers in my ear,
I am His, and He is mine.

His forever, only His;
Who the Lord and me shall part?
Ah, with what a rest of bliss
Christ can fill the loving heart!
Heav’n and earth may fade and flee,
Firstborn light in gloom decline
But while God and I shall be,
I am His, and He is mine.

George Wade Robinson, 1838-1877

Trip to Niamey

Earlier this month I went to Niamey with a few friends. One had family members come for 2 weeks' visit, so we took them around to the tourist places in Niamey. The Grand Marché, the Petit Marché, a ride on the river in a canoe looking for the hippos (found one with its baby!!!), eating Shish-Kabobs by the river watching the sun go down, and tracking down the giraffes an hour down the road out of Niamey. We took lots of pictures --wish you could see all of them. Here's a few:

What do you feed your ba-bies???

Visit to a Nearby Village

Yesterday I took the girls, M, M, & S, down the road to a nearby village to do teaching with the women. The TBA (trained birthing attendant) who knew of our coming had already informed the women in the morning. Now she went back around to say we were here. She was gone over an hour encouraging women to come. And they came. There were probably 60 women gathered before she herself returned. The girls started the teaching on malaria. Before we finished maybe we had 100 women gathered. They were very interested in the teaching, knowing better how to care for their children, what to do when they had a fever, what treatment they needed. Yet the treatment isn’t readily available. There are young men who are roving ‘pharmacist’. But their medicine is not reliable nor is the treatment they give necessarily accurate.

The girls have been doing this teaching weekly in the village of Galmi going to each larger neighborhood. It’s been encouraging to here reports, how the women have questions and are eager to learn something.

Today I went to Magaria to teach the women. It’s been months since I have been there on a Wednesday. I go regularly to church there, although attending one church one week and the other the next. Then I go out to Jinkai to visit a small growing church once a month. I enjoy these visits, yet I miss getting more in-depth time with the women. So today’s visit was a real encouragement to me as we did a Bible lesson together and had a time of prayer. One of the ladies had a minor stroke earlier this week. She is regaining her strength, but it scares me to think what could happen any other time. She has tried to learn to read but . . .so we worked on memorizing verses. Today she quoted Psalm 23 for me. I encouraged her to keep reviewing this and let God’s Word strengthen her.

Pictures taken in April

Mom, me, and my sister, Diane
















Diane and my niece, Nicole
















High-School Girlfriends : Debbie, Linda, Janet, Leslie, and me
















My nieces and me
















Girlfriends from childhood, Pam, Becky & me

Something New

So it's time to put something new on here. Sorry it's been so long. That seems to be the story of my life. I'm often behind and trying to catch up. Anyway. . .I thought I'd put some pictures on here but I'm not having success. I'll try that later.

I'ts now over 3 months since I got back from vacation at home. It was great to be there with my family and enjoy lots of different celebrations. One being Easter!!! This is one celebration we don't just celebrate on Easter, yearly, but is celebrated or should be celebrated each day. New life in Christ!!!

Another celebration was my birthday, marking 50 years. It's nice to know I'm not alone in celebrating this hallmark. A lot of us are enjoying this together!!! Smiles. Again it's a celebration of the daily life God has given us on this earth.

Then there was the celebration of my nephew's marriage. Darren & Amanda. Their motto is 'Good for Life'. That's how it should always be. A marriage relationship committed for life, with God in the center.

Back here at Galmi we celebrated life in a different sense than the normal. Helene is celebrating life in the presence of her Lord and Savior, Jesus. It was her home going on July that we celebrated on July 30th. That's something to anticipate and eagerly waiting for. Helene was diagnosed with cancer last year and lived a full life until the last few weeks. Her desire was to stay serving the Lord in Niger with her family -husband and 3 children. And that's what she did. She knew and could say, 'God is good, all the time'.

Ahh, to Shop in Niger or The Shops Around the Corners

Being back in Niger I have a day before traveling to Galmi. Of course there’s always this ‘n that to buy, but I don’t have my own transportation. I could take a taxi everywhere in the city to shop, they’re readily available. Being I’m traveling by bus tomorrow I can’t take perishables with me. Can’t get that pizza cheese or sausage which makes for a quick meal (I’ll just have to prepare some meatballs or hamburger patties in advance instead). There are various shops around the corners here. There are a couple of small grocers, various fruit stands, your basic needs canteen and young men on the corners with various items to sell. I go to the grocers to get chocolate mousse mix (taste just as good as my homemade stuff and easier to fix), batteries, cookies and yogurt to eat while here. I buy a few mangoes (it’s mango season!!!) from the fruit/veggie stand outside the grocer. I’m a regular here when I come into town and the man seems to give me good prices. There’s a man with used clothing who always tries to interest me in something. Today I stopped and looked at blouses. I ended up buying 3, brand names too –Sag Harbor, Silk Exchange, & White Stag (J) all for $8. Not bad and they’re in good condition. One is a size 2X but I think it got washed (was to be dry cleaned only) and it shrunk to my size. I walked back towards to Guesthouse and to the other corner to get a prepaid phone card for one of the young men who sell to vehicles stopped at the light. To get his attention I said “Tsss” and immediately he turned. It works. I was expecting some visitors so went to a canteen where I saw they had a fridge and bought was yogurt drinks. They’re really yummy. You drink right out of the plastic bag having made a whole with your teeth in the corner. So my visitors came, had a good long chat, & showed pictures of my time at home. It was 8:30 and I hadn’t had dinner. I went across the street to the bakery looking for something like a pizza but they had none. So out the door and to the restaurant next door to buy some egg rolls, 6 in fact, that I eat all by myself. Yummy. There you have it –the shops around the corners.

Spiritual Life Conference 2007

Spiritual Life Conference is an annual event for SIM missionaries. We all gather in Niamey for 5 days of refreshment in the Word of God and a relaxing and fun time together. We totaled 179 missionaries, including 64 children. Wow, I didn’t think we were so many. The theme of the conference was “Ministry and the Sovereignty of God” based on Philippians 2:12b-13. This reads, “Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose.” I would like to share with you some of the thoughts from the first sessions.

We need to be passionate about living in the awe of God. Is there a daily deliberate passion to worship God? (Ps. 42:1).
We must know God, not just know about Him, and not just know Bible truths. God wants us to know Him. Phil 3:7-8. In knowing Him am I convinced that I’m exactly where God wants me to be?
We must serve God, not just identify with Him, by serving others. Mark 10:45. Learn to serve people in a new tender way in love, seeing their need and share Jesus.
We will reap rewards of living in the wonder of worship. I Peter 1:8,9. Our worship will cause us to have a more intimate relationship with one another. Criticism disappears when we know worship.

Linda, Mirjam (my new neighbor for 4 months), & Ruth.

Kids singing at Family Worship

HAVING TEA

I mentioned in ‘Vacation Pictures’ about a story I’d tell someday. This happened while Linda & I were vacationing for 2 weeks in Niamey. We were going to go shopping for cushion material, but first we had to stop at the small shop around the corner to finish buying for the co-op, take the receipts to the office for verification, and then drop off the purchases at the Guest House. While at both the office and at the Guest House we got distracted visiting this person and that person as different ones came in. It was nearly 11:30 when we finally left the guest house and decided to return to the house where we were staying. Then we thought maybe we should try to find Mariama and her sister Ruth, who might be living close to the GH. So we went to check out one area, which is a plot without a house, with squatters or maybe guards of the plot. We walked in and greeted the ladies invited us to sit down. The lady of the hut brought a heavy fluffy blanket for us to sit on and some water to drink. We finally mentioned that we were looking for M & R. Would they happen to know them and where they live? Why of course they did. One of the ladies is the sister of M & R’s uncle’s wife who works for us as a night guard at Galmi. Small world. But first they invited us to have some tea and then they’d take us. So we agreed. The lady left and came back with two French loaves (baguettes) and when she started to make the tea we knew we were in for a long stay before we’d be able to depart. In some ways, looking back, I think somehow we should have really tried to excuse ourselves, but we didn’t. Two rounds of sweet and bitter green tea and 1 ½ hours later (1 p.m.) we all left to go to M & R’s in the truck. It wasn’t too far away, just down around 2 corners.

Mariama and Ruth were so surprised and pleased to see us. I was really excited to see them too, because I didn’t know how we were going to find them. I had been praying that God would bring us together. And He did! They welcomed us into their hut, again sitting on a fluffy heavy blanket, we began another long visit. They other ladies went next door and visited someone then left. Mariama made some lunch –rice and beans with onions and spice. We talked and talked with Ruth; got her caught up on the Galmi news.

We met Mariama’s husband who’s been a musician for the last 3 years. There’s a group of 7 Fulani and 3 Tamajeq singers and players of instruments. They have made a tour in Europe last year and cut a CD with 10 pieces. It’s really a good production. We got to see pictures of them in their traditional dress for singers. He also embroiders, as do M & R, the typical Fulani style. After the lunch of rice and beans, they began making tea. Nibbling on peanuts we began the tea ‘ceremony’. It lasted another 1½ to 2 hours. We had the complete 3 rounds.

I have known Mariama & Ruth for 20 years, since Ruth was born. Their father was our compound guard for those 20 years. He’s now back in Tchinta with his family. His children would often come over to my place on Saturday morning. I’d try to help them with reading and writing skills. Ruth has done well and is completing the 10th grade. That’s quite commendable.

MORE PICTURES

Dinner at my place, from left to right: Vee, Yoko, Linda, Gen, Silke, Heather.

Shepherd carrying two newborn goats, on the ridge of the dam.

Huang Di leading the ladies up the embankment (Cali is up on with me, of course).

Leading the donkeys into the water to fill up the jugs. Camels, loaded with millet, stay at the edge to drink.

FUN TIMES

I’d like to share some fun times I've done recently, as I am able to squeeze time in between work. In October some friends came to Niger for a visit. Linda & I went to Maradi to catch up with them and bring them to Galmi. Vee & Heather, twins, spent nearly a month visiting and helping out wherever they saw a need. It had been 4 years since Vee left Galmi after serving 16 years as Galmi Guest House Hostess and Missionary Care. In Maradi we enjoyed eating out with other friends. At Galmi we shared meals together, made Christmas cards, played games, prayed together, came out to the bush for a visit, and many other things.

The last Saturday here five of us went for a walk at the dam that’s just east of Galmi. Of course we had to take the dogs with us. They were ever so anxious and excited when we let them out of the car. But we had them stay with us until we got off the ridge and to the edge of the water. Then they went wild with excitement as they went romping and swimming through the water trying to chase the birds. It’s such a refreshing place to take a walk and enjoy the sound of the water and watch the people bringing their animals down to water.

Just when we’re ready to get in the car and return the dogs decide to go for one last swim. You know how it is with kids –“just one more time, please”. But they didn’t ask they just went. We almost thought they might not come back. They jumped in the water and started swimming out and out and out and out. Finally we got their attention to turn around and they slowly made their way back to us. Oh how they loved that water! We’ll have to do that again someday soon.