De-nied De-Nile

Vacation wraps up on Friday. With our year round school schedule, we enjoy having the entire month of December off (we'll pay for it in July!). This vacation was good, for the most part. We enjoyed a lot of extra time with our boys, we both got to prepare for our upcoming school term, Heather got caught up on 8 months of scrapbooking, and I got to record a bunch of podcasts and begin my new book. We didn't go on any family getaways, but Heather and I signed up for a staff trip to raft the Nile in Uganda (next country west of us in Kenya). That was our big event for vacation.

Our friends volunteered to watch the boys for two nights, and we began our journey in a van to meet the bus at the highway. As we drove up the hill, I checked through my pockets one last time to make sure I had everything. I did most of the packing for the boys' overnight stays and for Heather and me. Well, as I double-checked my passport, I could NOT believe my eyes. My passport expired on November 29, 2008. I was dumbfounded. This meant no Nile River for me, no three day vacation with just my wife, and no free babysitting. Heather got on the bus with the rest of the group, and I dejectedly rode back down the hill.

I was in denial because I wouldn't be in de-Nile. (I know you saw that one coming...)

To say I was devastated would be an understatement. I went home, unpacked my stuff and the boys' stuff, and sulked for three days. You may be wondering how I let my passport expire. Well, if you remember me writing about the death of John back in September, that is directly related to my passport lapsing. John was our government liason. He kept track of passports, driver's licenses, taxes, etc. with the Kenyan government. Well, his job was a difficult one and no one stepped in. I didn't realize that our administration had a gap in that position, so I assumed everything was all right with my documentation. (My renewed passport is waiting for me at the US Embassy as I type; don't worry.)

Heather came back with a sun burn, a pineapple, an amazing DVD of the rapids (some class 5's) and a lot of sympathy for me. The picture above is Heather and Jessica in front of the Nile after their long day of rafting.

I'm hoping to put together another trip in April when we're on Easter break, so if you want to come along, let me know. Just make sure your passport is up-to-date.

Let it no! Let it no! Let it no!

Merry Christmas! As I write this, the family (plus adopted Auntie Jess who is a dorm mom at RVA this year) sits in the living room playing with Christmas presents. We had an amazing morning full of new treasures, thanks mostly to our friends and family in the US who sent us a bounty of gifts. We’ve been thoroughly loved through all of the gifts of Christmas.

While most of the US seems to be experiencing snow already this season, we here in Kenya are not. In fact, it’s the opposite. It’s summer in the Southern Hemisphere and so it’s been in the 80’s and dry and sunny nearly every day of the last two months. While you all are saying “Let it snow!” this Christmas, our world seems to be echoing “Let it no!”

--The word NO. Asher is learning to talk, and his favorite word right now is NO. No matter what we ask him to do, he barks out “No!” Even if we’re offering candy or toys, he’ll still feel obligated to say “No!” before he takes the attractive item eagerly. He’s learning other words now too, though. He learned how to say, “Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!” from a Bob the Builder DVD Heather’s mom sent. It sounds more like “Ho, ho, ho! Merry Meez” but we’ve enjoyed every one of the thousand times he’s said it this week, nevertheless. And "Ho, ho, ho" is much more appreciated by parents than "No, no, no."

--NO rain. Yesterday afternoon, after the missionary community had delivered over 60 food baskets to widows in the community, it seemed like our prayers would be answered. Dark clouds and rolling thunder swept across the hillside and filled the vast valley. We thought maybe, just maybe, God would give us a little extra Christmas present in the form of rain. Alas, it wasn’t to be. Perhaps another community miles away received the rain but not ours. A weak season of crops is going to compound the problems of an already struggling economy in this country.

--NO water. This time it’s not “rain related.” A pipe in our neighbor’s yard started leaking yesterday (Xmas Eve morning) and by the time we were ready to go caroling at the children’s ward of the local hospital, it was a fountain. They had to shut off the pipe (which supplies eight houses in our part of campus with water), and the work crew won’t come back to work until Monday (Kenyans observe Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas as holidays). Kenyans don’t “do” emergencies on their days off. My friend (who still has water) filled up a drum for us, and this will be our little well until early next week. Here’s Mrs. Claus at her ice hole at the North Pole.
--NO family. This is actually only our second “family-less” Christmas since we’ve been on the mission field; 2005 was our other. Heather’s parents were here in 2006, and we were in the US for December 2007. Those past memories are sweet though, and the anticipation of our home assignment next year definitely is making this Christmas less lonely.

--NO regrets. We’re lucky to be part of God’s work in Africa. No sacrifice we make could make us regret that we’re here. He’s given us more than we could deserve.

(Micah showing off his new bathtub toys in front of the last of our tap water.)

New stuff

I put some new pictures on Facebook today. Click here.

If you're checking in on my blog every week or so, why not become a "follower"? Don't worry. There is no blue Kool-Aid involved. Just click on the "follow this blog" on the sidebar. If you don't have a blog, no worries. You can still create a blogger account and keep track of new posts made by me or by your other favorite bloggers.

I've gotten a few new quotes posted over here.

The new year is just around the bend and with it...a new adventure in communication for me. I've enjoyed blogging and writing books, and now I'm going to start a podcast. If you don't know what a podcast is, I'm right there with you. Two months ago I didn't either, but my friend Shaun (check out his company Singularity Audio) has really turned me on to them and it's something I really enjoy creating and I bet you'll really enjoy listening to. Here is Wikipedia's definition if you're really lost. More information on this to come in February...

12 days until Chirstmas...

...so I thought you might be able to relate to this video.

Interested?

From time to time, I’ll get emails from former students or youth group members—some of whom are now graduated from college…man, I’m getting old—mentioning that they are “interested” in missions. I tell them that’s great, but I can’t get much further into the conversation without mentioning that “interest” in missions won’t even get you off the couch, let alone out your front door. I have two simple pieces of advice for those who are at the starting point of “interest” in missions.

One. Tell people. Tell your best friend. Tell your uncle. Tell your church’s mission pastor. Tell the guy who slices your deli cheese. Tell the lady who cuts your hair. Why? Well, if you’re really truly sincerely interested, then you won’t mind other people knowing. If your interest is ever going to lead somewhere realistically, then it’s good for the key people in your life to know ASAP. But…if you’re fearing the sacrifice or knowing that it’s not probable for you or if you’re puffing yourself up as spiritual, you won’t tell people. Because you really aren’t interested. The other benefit to telling people is that they will keep you accountable. They will encourage you down the road and help you take steps to reach your goal. Or perhaps they’ll help you to see why you shouldn’t actually go? In spring of 2004, our missions pastor had 8 of us stand in front of the congregation, all of us claiming to be “interested” in missions. From there, conversations happened for many of us which led us closer or farther away from missions. Even though a few of those 8 people haven’t gone out (yet), they still are being helped and challenged toward the serious calling of career missions. “Interest” isn’t enough. You need to tell people.

I’ll try to be a little more positive with #2. There are huge rewards with missions. Sadly, the first thing that pops into the head when the word “missions” is uttered is sacrifice and struggle and loss. Those are certainly a part of the calling to missions, but the rewards dwarf the hardships. Paul wrote to the Corinthians that “our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal weight of glory that far outweighs them all.” Our focus as believers in general and as missionaries in particular must be on the eternal glory, the rewards in store for us. Sure, you probably will see tangible fruit in your missions endeavor. Perhaps a Bible will be translated, a village will be converted, a deathbed patient saved, a child’s life changed. Most likely there will be awesome rewards along the way for the missionary, but there’s also a slight possibility that when you hold up the joys of the missionary life with the sacrifices—family, friends, comfort, cultural familiarity—you may not even feel that they’re worth it. But you’ll need to remember, these will not be the greatest reward.

The verses that I need to come back to over and over are Jesus’ words in Mark 9:29-31. “I tell you the truth, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.”

The leaving is necessary but so is an expectation of reward.