Go GOD!

Yipee!  Yahoo!  I just got an e-mail from Trent Christian Church in Oregon.  They had a three day VBS this weekend.  It went well except the offering was really low on the first two days.  Their goal was $1000 for the Turkana English as a Second Language program.  Their total on night two was $116.01.  It was looking like they set the goal way too high.  Don't underestimate God!!!

They went beyond the goal Sunday evening.  God is good isn't He!!!!  The kids had studied "doubting Thomas" for one of their lessons.  It is a good lesson for us all to remember.  Continue to keep the funding for this project in your prayers.  God knows the need and he knows who needs to give.  Ask for wisdom for me as I try to discern what churches and individuals to talk to about this need!

ESL and grammar

Hello All!

I am currently engaged in a very challenging endeavor.  I am trying to learn how to teach English to speakers of foreign languages.  I think this will be a wonderful ability to bring back to the Turkana church.  So, I am gamely making my way through the theory, methods, and materials used to teach English.  The most challenging aspect is teaching grammar, because I do not like it.  Since I don't like it, I don't really want to teach it.  I do see the value of it though, so I will plug away at it and hope that I get it and can teach it well. 

I am taking an intense class in Seattle through the University of Seattle and the School of TESOL.  We are covering four semester long classes in four weeks.  As you can imagine, I am not getting a lot of sleep.  I have not been able to even do any sight-seeing.  I go to class at 9 in the morning, get home at 3:30 or so and do homework there until about 10:30 or 11.  I am becoming very familiar with the walls of the classroom, and my rented bedroom :).  

I am at the end of the second week.  My grammar teaching point is due on Monday.  So, pray for me that I get it and that I can teach in a fun and informative manner.  If it is fun then my students will not have the same attitude as I do about grammar!  Any suggestions you teachers or students (of life or long-gone school days) want to give would be greatly appreciated!

I hope to resurface again to write a bit more in a week or so!

traveling

This week I have been traveling across a very large portion of our great country. There have been long driving days.  Thankfully, I have some books on tape to listen to when I get bored. I left Indiana last Friday (1st), crossed Illinois, and Missouri on I-70 and spent the night in Blue Springs with some wonderful supporters. Saturday I spent most of the day seeing just how long it takes to cross Kansas and Eastern Colorado. All day! I stayed with my parents Saturday through Tuesday morning. I had to get my car serviced for the next leg of the journey. I thought it would be a pretty quick thing, but it took most of Monday to get that done because of an electrical short in the blinkers.
Tuesday I crossed through Colorado and into Utah mostly on I-70. Wednesday I went north through Utah and into Idaho. I got to spend the night in Boise with former CMF teammates. I had a great time catching up with the Westfalls and getting to see most of the Rich family as well. Ingrid had to work, but the rest were able to come for dinner at the Westfalls. It was great getting to catch up on the things going on in all their lives. Thursday I passed through the rest of Idaho, eastern Oregon and Washington on my way to Seattle. Friday I will go south to Eugene, Oregon and on to Dexter where I will visit with a supporting church. While in Eugene I'll see former teammates, Bob and Karon Chapman, and future teammates, Scott and Kristi Seidel. I am looking forward to that.
Wow, reading all that makes me tired. Even so, I have seen some wonderful testimonies to the greatness of God along the way. The Majestic Rockies, the beautiful Cascades and the high desert plains are just a few examples. I was amazed how similar parts of Utah and Idaho are to Turkana. There are even warnings about areas with frequent dust storms :}. This world is so vast and so very different in many ways. Even so, there is no way we can travel too far from
God. He knows right where we are both physically and spiritually. It has been good to see his many acts of creation this week. It would be easy for me to think that all this travel has confused him about where I am.  I am a bit confused so he might be too.  Praise Him that he is mightier than my brain can fathom. Thankfully, we serve a God who isn't bothered by our many travels!! He even adds blessings along the way – like beautiful scenery and wonderful friends to break up the trip. Thanks God!!!

Flat Rock VBS

This week has been busy.  I have been enjoying the Jerusalem Marketplace with the children and adults at Flat Rock Christian Church in Flat Rock, Indiana.  We learned about the last week of Jesus' life.  It was so exciting to see Jesus after he rose from the dead.  

The children and adults got to see what a market place might be like in AD 30.  It was lots of fun to make a pipe instrument at the musicians tent and wooden dradels at the the carpenters shop.  They also got to make candy, jewelry and weave some at the weavers tent.  They got to try to weave some baskets too and learn about baking bread in ancient Israel.  I got to participate in teaching about the bakery on Thursday night.  I think a great time was had by all.  

The children also got to see some pictures about life in Turkana today.  What a difference from their lives here in America!  I hope they enjoyed hearing about the way the children live and play in Turkana.  They will get to learn a little about worship on Sunday night when they have their closing program.  I will not be able to be there, but I pray it goes well for them all!

Next week, I will be traveling to Seattle.  I will begin my class on how to teach English as a second language on the 11th.  So, I am preparing for lots of class and study time and very little sleep :).  This is a 12 credit hour class that gets done in one month.  So, I will be very busy.  Keep me in your prayers!