Greetings from Africa! 27 July 2004
The big news from here is that Erton and Lydia (who has two weeks leave from her job at the post office) are off on a ‘missionary journey’. They have been getting VERY stirred up to GO and MAKE DISCIPLES – and so, yesterday they went. This journey will last until Thursday or Friday, since Lydia’s daughter Unity will be home for the weekend. I don’t pretend to know what God is up to with them, but it certainly seems that He is up to something, and a rather big something at that. Erton has the camera with him, so next week could have some interesting photos.
I had a very good day today. I walked to the far side of town this morning to the office of my optometrist friend, Hans. He had offered to loan me some reading glasses until I get at least one eye fixed, and since I really needed something beyond my existing glasses, I went. He did not do as I expected – he did much more! He examined my eyes and made me prescription reading glasses on the spot. There was no bill. Praise the Lord! Reading is, indeed, much easier now. Hans then offered to give me a ride home if I was willing to hang out there for an hour or so, so I walked to a nearby grocery store and focused on buying HEAVY things I needed – having a ride from the store is an opportunity not to be wasted on things easily carried! I also had a ride on Saturday to the mall and a building supply story (to buy a replacement for a broken faucet handle) with Rev. Ruth and her husband Warren, so now I’m pretty well stocked up. On Saturday I bought the fixin’s for spaghetti sauce (one of my specialties) and made it that afternoon. A HUGE hit! [Hoping not to sound too prideful, it WAS rather good!]
The second part of today was the time spent with Oupa. Last week he formally asked me to ‘mentor’ him, and I readily agreed, and we decided on Tuesdays for our regular meetings. We had a wonderful time talking, praying, worshiping, cooking, eating and drinking coffee – sharing life! God really knew what He was doing in putting us together – Oupa even shares my addiction to pens!
On Saturday I am scheduled to have something of an adventure myself. One of the ladies in the Methodist healing group is married to a man who is in prison. (Remember, prisons here are not nearly as nice as they are in the US). She is picking me up on Saturday morning to go there (about an hour away) for me to meet and talk with him, and possibly some other inmates as well. I have wondered for a long time when and how God would open a door for obedience to Jesus’ exhortation to visit those in prison, so maybe this is it. Please pray for me to do God’s will that day, and pray for all the men in the prison I am going to. I will supply the name of the prison next week.
Another interesting event occurred last week. After supper Erton came into the kitchen with both hands behind his back and a funny look on his face. He proceeded to try to ask me a question, and had a very un-Erton-like hard time getting his words out. With prodding he produced two small boxes from behind his back, and pointed out that he and Lydia had only had a civil wedding ceremony. He asked if I could officiate an exchange of rights between Lydia and him – right then! Well, the Bible says to be ready in season and out of season, and this was a test. I had never really tried to look at wedding rings from God’s point of view before, so I looked and looked hard right then. I recalled Ex 13:9 “This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the LORD is to be on your lips.” Since they didn’t have special clothes I thought of covering them with my tellit for the ‘ceremony’, and that reminded me of Num 15:39-40 "It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes . . . and be holy to your God.” All of this helps explain the attached pictures taken of the ceremony, which I think are rather nice.
The other picture is of my
daughter’s
wedding in Minnesota in June (continuing the wedding theme). Everyone wants to
see pictures of the event, so it is only kind to accommodate.
Love from Africa
Lary