Orientation Highlights and Pictures

We are two weeks into our 3 week long Africa Based Orientation (ABO). We have been learning a ton. I know you want to see pictures, so I will share just a few interesting tidbits we have learned… then onto the pictures!
African culture and worldview – A man of status in Africa is a man with many wives, many sons, and many cattle. Women are generally of lower status than the children and even the cattle!
Spiritual Warfare – Africans believe that the dead are living among them and attribute much of what happens to them to be caused by the spirits of their ancestors.
Safety and security –We learned what to pack in our “Go Bag,” which we need to have ready at all times incase of immediate evacuation. We also learned that AIM’s policy is not to pay ransom in case of kidnapping. Sweet dreams tonight…
Healthy Living – Symptoms of malaria are fever, headache, diarrhea, and back ache. Make sure to get treatment immediately if you have these symptoms or you can die. Lovely….
Transformational Development –Really thought provoking and enlightening approach to “helping.” Don’t solve peoples’ problems for them. Instead, gather info from them and help them to reflect, steering them in the right direction. Empowering them rather than doing it yourself.
I have also been learning some practical skills…

This is my first time doing a load of wash by hand! The result… a bloody knuckle, a sore back, and semi-clean clothes for my family


It’s hard to tell, since the kids insisted on putting their “boats” on their heads, but these are seed pods from a tree on campus. Inside are tons of seeds, which look like plastic wafers that are fun to blow and throw. The empty pod looks like a little canoe and is very useful, we have discovered, for digging in the termite mounds.


The kids have long days in their class. They really have a blast and learn tons about Africa, but they are worn out at the end of the day… and happy to be with mom and dad


This is a local Africa Inland Church (AIC) called Myuni that we had the privilege of visiting last Sunday. AIC is the religious denomination that came out of the churches planted by Africa Inland Mission (AIM) in its beginnings. The church welcomed us as their honored guests and our kids got A LOT of attention (being surrounded, petted, yanked, stared at and asked lots of questions). It’s not everyday they have Mzungu children in their village!


To divert some of the attention away from Noah, Madison, and Ty we engaged the kids in a round of Ring Around the Rosie, London Bridges Falling Down, and Red Light, Green Light (in their local language, Kikamba) while we waited for the service to begin.


One by one, the kids in the front moved to sit next to the Mzungus.


And my kids did amazingly well sitting through 3 out of 4 hours of the church service… which was in a language we do not understand!


Psalm 139:9-10 is the official Missionary Kid (MK) verse.
There is even an “MK flag.” The chameleon represents the MK adapting/fitting into both its host culture (in this case, Africa) and passport culture (US).


This hike was a highlight for me. Sitting in classes all day… my body was begging for movement!! It was meant to be a group hike up the “hill” beside our campus. Due to the rain, it became an optional “hard core hike.” Our local guide led 5 of us safely up the mountain. The rain came as we began our descent, which made for a slippery –but fun- trip down!



I was so excited to witness this and capture it on film for Michael and the kids. Allow me to enlighten those of you who cannot identify…. the dung beetle…rolling it’s pile of dung. Doesn’t get much cooler than that in our family!



I saw this on the hike and pictured God’s light shining down on Africa
I’m sure we will have more fun pictures to post. Tomorrow we get to visit a local (Muslim) mosque with our head coverings in place and the kids will be visiting a local home in the next village over. We’re looking forward to our experiences.
It seems surreal that we are actually in Africa! There have been moments of home sickness, but this is beginning to feel like home. It just feels right to be here.
We are so thankful for the faithful giving and prayers from home that are allowing us to be here, where God has called us to serve. Please pray that more important than this great training and education, we remain in Christ and His Word. Apart from Him we can do nothing.
We love you!