"Yes! I got a tan!" was my thought as I inspected my bare feet before my bucket bath this evening. Then, as I scrubbed them, my excitement vanished as I realized that my "tan" was just a layer of mud.
Today has been so much fun. Mostly, I have helped Mrs. Chamberlin in the kitchen and helped her with some computer stuff, but this afternoon, I played some outdoor games with the orphans. One of the games (Slippers) is played by 3 people at a time. All the children remove their shoes and put their left shoe in one pile and their right shoe in another. One child stands in the middle of the other two players and dodges as they throw a ball (ours was a ball of socks). The point of the game is for the middle child to match the shoes with their pairs and place them in a line all while dodging the ball. If the middle person catches the ball, he is allowed to throw it as far as he can away from the other players. I was only able to get one pair of shoes reunited before I was pegged. You have to be really quick on your feet.
P.S. I walked with some of the orphans to a house nearby to fetch a nurse for Mrs. Chamberlin. When we got their, she was cooking fish, and she offered me one. (By offered, I mean she forced it into my hands.) I ate everything but the bones and tail. That's right! Everything -- even the head (eyeballs included). The locals eat the bones. Delicious!
Monday, June 9, 2014
Saturday, June 7, 2014
Cameroon: 6/6/14
Traveled a long, bumpy, volcanic road to the remote village, Kotto II, today. The Chamberlins needed to finalize their land purchase. During the 6 hours we waited for the government officials, we sat and talked with the locals. Several of the ladies are pleading for a school to be started. Dad gave a devotional to the 12 or so men that had gathered out of curiosity. I am so proud of him. For the first time speaking through a translator, he did remarkably well! Just going to list the Chambelins' vision for Kotto: II:
1. Church -- We need a preacher!!!
2. School-- We need teachers and administrators and artists!
3. Clinic -- We need doctors and nurses and people to wash laundry!
4. VBS -- We need people who love children!
5. Rabbit farm -- We need people who love rabbits!
6. Gardening -- We need farmers!
7. Ladies Bible study -- We need people who love the Word of God!
The Chamberlins are such go-getters! Will you pray about joining this ministry?
Mrs. Chamberlin and I have high hopes that a shelter will be built for us within the next 2 weeks so that we can have a VBS when Aunt Paula arrives.
1. Church -- We need a preacher!!!
2. School-- We need teachers and administrators and artists!
3. Clinic -- We need doctors and nurses and people to wash laundry!
4. VBS -- We need people who love children!
5. Rabbit farm -- We need people who love rabbits!
6. Gardening -- We need farmers!
7. Ladies Bible study -- We need people who love the Word of God!
The Chamberlins are such go-getters! Will you pray about joining this ministry?
Mrs. Chamberlin and I have high hopes that a shelter will be built for us within the next 2 weeks so that we can have a VBS when Aunt Paula arrives.
Cameroon: 6/5/14
What do you do when 4 orphans sit in your lap (2 at a time) throughout a 3 hour graduation ceremony? You get hot. You get really hot. Oh, but those precious moments were the highlights of my day -- exchanging tickles, gentle strokes, and lots and lots of kisses. Kids that are starved for love will pull anyone's heartstrings. Bring the heat!
After that ceremony, the administrators inviited us for soda and soye again. My dad has become a quick favorite around here. He could sit and talk to people all day if we didn't drag him away.
Liberman showed us around the mission compound for a longtime, giving us the opportunity for much more interaction with the nationals.
Names I learned today: 1. Aggie -- my little cuddler/kisser
2. Pascal -- my sweet, shy boy who likes to hug
3. Serg -- lay his head in my lap. Occasionally, he looked up at me with the biggest brown eyes and smiled a smile as if to say, "I'm so happy you're here."
4. Stephen -- one of the workers here who is kind of a gopher for the Chamberlins
5. Amelia -- an orphan who is constantly checking in on Mrs. Chamberlin. Mrs. Chamberlin is very ill right now with a chest cold.
6. Caleb -- boy who gives me shy smiles every time he sees me
7. Grace -- a 2nd grade teacher and Liberman's wife
8. Evette -- a 2nd grade teacher
9. Joyce -- Liberman and Grace's daughter named after Joyce Meyer
After that ceremony, the administrators inviited us for soda and soye again. My dad has become a quick favorite around here. He could sit and talk to people all day if we didn't drag him away.
Liberman showed us around the mission compound for a longtime, giving us the opportunity for much more interaction with the nationals.
Names I learned today: 1. Aggie -- my little cuddler/kisser
2. Pascal -- my sweet, shy boy who likes to hug
3. Serg -- lay his head in my lap. Occasionally, he looked up at me with the biggest brown eyes and smiled a smile as if to say, "I'm so happy you're here."
4. Stephen -- one of the workers here who is kind of a gopher for the Chamberlins
5. Amelia -- an orphan who is constantly checking in on Mrs. Chamberlin. Mrs. Chamberlin is very ill right now with a chest cold.
6. Caleb -- boy who gives me shy smiles every time he sees me
7. Grace -- a 2nd grade teacher and Liberman's wife
8. Evette -- a 2nd grade teacher
9. Joyce -- Liberman and Grace's daughter named after Joyce Meyer
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Cameroon 6/4/14
It's hard to forget the sights of Cameroon -- the mountains, the fruit trees swaying in the breeze, the red clay. But I did not realize until I awoke this morning that I had forgotten the sounds. Two stories below me somewhere were children playing, birds chirping, roosters crowing, and palm trees whispering in the wind. I closed my eyes again and smiled. I surely did miss this place.
Since I am tired, I will list everything that has happened today:
1. Bathed from a bucket of cool water (which felt amazing considering we have no air conditioning in this 80-or-so-degree weather.)
2. Ate a Nutri-Grain bar for breakfast.
3. Like a Hobbit, I ate second breakfast: omelet, fresh mango, pineapple, and banana, and bread with homemade tropical fruit jelly.
4. Attended the school's kindergarten graduation from 1:00-3:30.
5. Was invited by the chief to eat soye (beef and onions on a stick with LOTS of pepper spice) and drink soda with him.
6. Heated up some curried beef and rice made by the amazing Mrs. Chamberlin.
7. Took a nap after dinner (jet lag has hit us hard).
8. Got up at 8:00 p.m. and made Dad and me some instant coffee on a gas stove with a kettle. Currently sitting on the couch enjoying each other's company while we sip our coffee and nibble at his Belgian chocolate.
People we have met today and yesterday:
1. Peter: works with the Chamberlins
2. Elme: our CRAZY driver last night who drove us from the airport to Limbe.
3. Laticia: my favorite little orphan girl so far
4. Stephen: works with the Chamberlins; also a prince in a nearby village.
5. Elizabeth: preschool teacher
6. Marcel: the principal of the school
7. Pa Chief: the caretaker of the mission
8. David and Nathan: the two newest orphans (one a baby and the other only 1 and 1/2 years old).
Since I am tired, I will list everything that has happened today:
1. Bathed from a bucket of cool water (which felt amazing considering we have no air conditioning in this 80-or-so-degree weather.)
2. Ate a Nutri-Grain bar for breakfast.
3. Like a Hobbit, I ate second breakfast: omelet, fresh mango, pineapple, and banana, and bread with homemade tropical fruit jelly.
4. Attended the school's kindergarten graduation from 1:00-3:30.
5. Was invited by the chief to eat soye (beef and onions on a stick with LOTS of pepper spice) and drink soda with him.
6. Heated up some curried beef and rice made by the amazing Mrs. Chamberlin.
7. Took a nap after dinner (jet lag has hit us hard).
8. Got up at 8:00 p.m. and made Dad and me some instant coffee on a gas stove with a kettle. Currently sitting on the couch enjoying each other's company while we sip our coffee and nibble at his Belgian chocolate.
People we have met today and yesterday:
1. Peter: works with the Chamberlins
2. Elme: our CRAZY driver last night who drove us from the airport to Limbe.
3. Laticia: my favorite little orphan girl so far
4. Stephen: works with the Chamberlins; also a prince in a nearby village.
5. Elizabeth: preschool teacher
6. Marcel: the principal of the school
7. Pa Chief: the caretaker of the mission
8. David and Nathan: the two newest orphans (one a baby and the other only 1 and 1/2 years old).
Monday, June 2, 2014
Test Message
Hello, one and all! As many of you know, my Dad and I are headed to Africa today! We will be serving in the great country of Cameroon. If you can see this blog post, send us a message letting us know that you are praying for us! Thank you all so much for supporting us! Be on the lookout here for more posts to come!
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Summer Missions... from Home?
Hello, all!
As many of you know, I will not be going on a missions trip this summer, but will instead be attending Camp BIMI, a missionary "boot camp" in Tennessee. Even though I will not be going on a foreign missions trip, I am trying my hardest to be a missionary right here in Millbrook, Alabama, and wherever I go this summer.
There is a ministry that has been on my heart lately, though. I have been reading BIMI's (Baptist International Missions Inc.) magazine updates and have stumbled upon a ministry that you and I can be a part of -- without ever having to leave the comforts of your sofa! This is a Bible distribution ministry. There was recently an Indonesian Bible project that was so successful that it provided a Bible for EVERY STUDENT IN INDONESIA! Isn't that incredible? And Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world!
Now our focus switches from Indonesia to the small group of islands of Fiji. You can see by the picture below that Fiji is located just to the east of Australia.
As many of you know, I will not be going on a missions trip this summer, but will instead be attending Camp BIMI, a missionary "boot camp" in Tennessee. Even though I will not be going on a foreign missions trip, I am trying my hardest to be a missionary right here in Millbrook, Alabama, and wherever I go this summer.
There is a ministry that has been on my heart lately, though. I have been reading BIMI's (Baptist International Missions Inc.) magazine updates and have stumbled upon a ministry that you and I can be a part of -- without ever having to leave the comforts of your sofa! This is a Bible distribution ministry. There was recently an Indonesian Bible project that was so successful that it provided a Bible for EVERY STUDENT IN INDONESIA! Isn't that incredible? And Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world!
Now our focus switches from Indonesia to the small group of islands of Fiji. You can see by the picture below that Fiji is located just to the east of Australia.
The missionaries in charge of this Fiji Bible Project are attempting to distribute 230,000 Bibles in Fiji, allowing every student on these islands to own a Bible. For just $2, you can put a Bible in a student's hands. Will you consider donating to this Fiji Bible Project this summer?
The missionaries have put a recent update on their blog Fiji Bible Project saying that they still lack $10,000 of the $464,000 they need to raise. Also, the Fijian government has placed a tax on these shipments of Bibles amounting to $48,000. Please pray either that the government will drop the tax or that the $48,000 will be raised for this tax.
So how do you donate? There is a donate button near the top of the missionaries' blog. Also, for those of you living near me, I will be taking donations and applying them to this fund as well. I hope to be able to do a few fundraisers this summer to raise money for this incredible ministry.
Please pray that God will continue to bless this project, and please consider being a part of it yourself!
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Zach
Yesterday I went on a date with a special guy named Zach. Zach has autism, and that was all I knew about him before I spent the day with him at a go cart track. To be quite honest, I was excited, but very apprehensive about what this day had in store for me; but by the time we parted at the end of the day, my entire perspective of Zach had changed. We had a blast! Together we rode go carts, soaked each other with bumper boats, played like kids in the arcade, stuffed ourselves with sweets at Golden Corral, and ended the day singing Disney songs on the bus ride back to campus.
It was during this bus ride, though, that something went wrong -- not with him, but with me. Earlier that morning, I had texted a friend saying that I was going on a date with an autistic guy. I thought nothing of that text until the reply came -- just as Zach was holding my phone listening to my music. I didn't know I had a text until I saw Zach remove the phone from his ear and look at my screen. His happy countenance changed immediately, and he said, "That hurts." I took the phone from him, curious as to what this message said, and then my heart dropped to my toes. The text said, "So how did you end up on a date with an autistic guy? Does he like you as more than friends?" I looked at Zach, who was shuffling uncomfortably, then back at my phone, at a loss for words.
It was Zach who spoke first. "She just doesn't know me."
A spark of revelation flickered inside me. "That's right, Zach. She doesn't know you at all." I immediately began to text a reply to my friend. "He asked me to go on a dating outing with him just as friends. We had a blast! He is so much fun!!!" I showed the message to Zach, and he nodded his approval. After I sent it he asked me to send another. "Could you tell her that I'm only MILDLY autistic and that God has been gracious to me by making me less autistic than most autistic people?" I smiled and sent his message.
After that fiasco, I looked at him and said, "Zach, I want to thank you for asking me in this dating outing. You are my very good friend, and I can't think of a better, more fun person to go with to a go cart track."
He smiled. "You're my really good friend too."
That day will forever be etched in my memory. That was the day that Zach "the autistic guy" became Zach "the guy who knows EVERYTHING about comic books and video games", "the guy who loves America and isn't afraid to share his political views with any and all", "the guy who loves to have fun", "the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. of go cart racing", "the guy who can read a stack of novels in 30 minutes and be able to tell you all about them", "the guy who 'eats his money's worth' at Golden Corral", "the guy who knows every Disney song by heart (and has a mean Gaston impression)", "the guy that makes me laugh." Zach went from being "the autistic guy" to being my friend.
My judgment was clouded prior to yesterday, but Zach taught me that autism doesn't define a person. The more I pondered this concept, the more I realized that we as Christians do this so often -- not to people with autism, but to people with sin. We look at what people wear/say/do, and we immediately label them. We steer clear of them because we aren't like them. But if you will recall, you used to be like them; but praise God that He didn't judge you like you are judging others. He looked past your faults and died for you, and He wants you, in all your disease-ridden self, to be with Him always. Now look at those we judge. He wants to be with them always too. Can't we suck up our pride and love them instead of labeling them?
It was during this bus ride, though, that something went wrong -- not with him, but with me. Earlier that morning, I had texted a friend saying that I was going on a date with an autistic guy. I thought nothing of that text until the reply came -- just as Zach was holding my phone listening to my music. I didn't know I had a text until I saw Zach remove the phone from his ear and look at my screen. His happy countenance changed immediately, and he said, "That hurts." I took the phone from him, curious as to what this message said, and then my heart dropped to my toes. The text said, "So how did you end up on a date with an autistic guy? Does he like you as more than friends?" I looked at Zach, who was shuffling uncomfortably, then back at my phone, at a loss for words.
It was Zach who spoke first. "She just doesn't know me."
A spark of revelation flickered inside me. "That's right, Zach. She doesn't know you at all." I immediately began to text a reply to my friend. "He asked me to go on a dating outing with him just as friends. We had a blast! He is so much fun!!!" I showed the message to Zach, and he nodded his approval. After I sent it he asked me to send another. "Could you tell her that I'm only MILDLY autistic and that God has been gracious to me by making me less autistic than most autistic people?" I smiled and sent his message.
After that fiasco, I looked at him and said, "Zach, I want to thank you for asking me in this dating outing. You are my very good friend, and I can't think of a better, more fun person to go with to a go cart track."
He smiled. "You're my really good friend too."
That day will forever be etched in my memory. That was the day that Zach "the autistic guy" became Zach "the guy who knows EVERYTHING about comic books and video games", "the guy who loves America and isn't afraid to share his political views with any and all", "the guy who loves to have fun", "the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. of go cart racing", "the guy who can read a stack of novels in 30 minutes and be able to tell you all about them", "the guy who 'eats his money's worth' at Golden Corral", "the guy who knows every Disney song by heart (and has a mean Gaston impression)", "the guy that makes me laugh." Zach went from being "the autistic guy" to being my friend.
My judgment was clouded prior to yesterday, but Zach taught me that autism doesn't define a person. The more I pondered this concept, the more I realized that we as Christians do this so often -- not to people with autism, but to people with sin. We look at what people wear/say/do, and we immediately label them. We steer clear of them because we aren't like them. But if you will recall, you used to be like them; but praise God that He didn't judge you like you are judging others. He looked past your faults and died for you, and He wants you, in all your disease-ridden self, to be with Him always. Now look at those we judge. He wants to be with them always too. Can't we suck up our pride and love them instead of labeling them?
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