At this time of writing, I have half of a battery left on my computer and no electricity in sight. I am pretty sure we will be out until tomorrow morning or afternoon. Our power shuts off a lot here. 95% of the time there is no warning, just off. It is so frustrating. I know in the Upper East Region their off time is even worse so I guess I should be thankful. I get so ANGRY!!!! AHHHHH!!!Okie, switching gears-- language. It was not too bad this week. I did mostly well. Still, I don't sense progress. Someone asked if I would do my level 3 evaluation by December and I was like, "no.way." I still cannot figure out sentence structure. I am not immersed enough to be forced to make normal, everyday sentences. I did meet some new people and that was encouraging, in that, I am getting good and introducing myself and talking about my family, though, I think that should have been set in stone last year. I did do some sewing at Rafia's. And she did try to get me talking. But I just could not understand. She is so patient with me. I walked away, though, determined not to down myself or whine. I just praised God. With every step home, I thanked God.Another problem I have...(another one???) is that I cannot find a balance. I am all or none. Either I do language and nothing else or I do admin/errands/other SIM team stuff/cooking. I cannot do both. Last week I did not get a day off. So, I decided that this week I would take Friday AND Saturday. But Friday was really not restful. There was just so much stuff I needed to catch up on. And then, Saturday I cooked all day. Like, seriously, until about 4pm. So, at least I don't have to cook this week...and possible next week too!But I just cannot find a balance. I am overwhelmed with people I should call and emails I need to answer and a bunch of other stuff. I need to be doing language, and with that I should really be doing 8 hours a day and not 6. But living here is so hard. So different from anything I have ever experienced. I am usually a great multi tasker. But I cannot do it here. Why?Anyways, tomorrow is Monday. I am determined to do my best. And to be obedient in what is before me.But as I go to bed with no electricity and fans I am so tempted to focus on what is not getting done and what I cannot do and how tired this makes me and...oh boy...I just really need your prayers.
Joy?
I had another good week. I was talking to someone on the phone about my week and I did not even think, I just said, "I had joy." JOY!!? I shocked myself when that came out. Joy in language!!!???? WHAT A MIRACLE!!!I really sensed God say to me that this is His will. His will is for me to learn this. I need to obey. So, I got all uppity and was like, "Okie, God, if you want this to happen, you gotta do it, because I got nothing in me. I got no new ideas, no new people, no nothing." And then, I was like, wait a sec..."I got nothing anyways!" So, each morning I commited myself to going out and following it thru. There were a couple times and places each afternoon I just wanted to say, "Nahhhhh" or "tomorrow" and go back home but I remembered telling God in the morning I would obey and I did. And there was joy. John 15 has been in my quiet times a lot. Abide in me is repeated many times. And Friday, Abide in my love and fullness of joy. There was no day this week that I regretted. There was no day this week where I said, "I'm such a failure" because, I did all that I can do. Do I see improvements? No, not really. But I do not care. I was faithful and God was directing everything. I had perseverance and God was steadfast. I. had. joy.I learned how to say the story of when the man followed me. I have said it to a few people so far. My goal is to say it 15 more times. I hope by number 15 it will just roll off my tongue. But already, I noticed me saying phrases from that dialogue in normal conversation. So, I guess I do see an improvement.That. Is. God.Thank you for praying. I pray for another week of obedience and just putting one foot in front of the other.
Do Not Freak Out
I like Ghana. I can't imagine staying here for this long and not liking it. In August, I celebrated 13 years here! 11 in Accra and 2 in Tamale. I do not know if in the beginning I thought I would still be here after 13 years. I knew I was called to missions for my whole life but where was the question I did not have an answer to. I do not know how long I will stay in Ghana. But, I have told people that if I am killing myself (over dramatic again:)) in learning this language I better stay here forever to keep using it!Speaking of language...don't shield your eyes over what I am about to tell you. It is good news! I made some small-small goals for the week. One was that I would spend 6 hours for four days this week studying, going out and listening to Dagbani. The second goal was that I wanted to share the Bible stories 3 times as I was out. The first goal I did not quite get. One of my days was running around and helping some other missionaries. But I got 3.5 good days in. I said my stories about 5 times this week. When I thought my 3 was enough I just sensed that nudge from the Spirit to try again. And I obeyed!!!! How many times does it take for me to know obedience always brings joy?! I still need God to push me out the door. And yet, every time, something good happened. Not always easy things but good things like building relationships with my neighbors, giving high fives to kids, and just being able to "hear" what they have said to me. Progress people, small-small progress. But progress, nonetheless!I did have one experience that I will chalk up to being negative. (And, Mom, do not freak out.) As I was walking this guy yelled "white, white!" I tried to ignore him but he came towards me. Then he started greeting and I usually just roll my eyes because he thinks he will get my phone number or money or something. He kept talking and I just cut him off, politely, and started walking. He followed me and kept talking. He kept saying, "O, please try" meaning give me money. I refused. I went to my friend's place and she wasn't there. I went to another friend's place and she wasn't there. There was a girl who knows me but I could see she did not know what to do with this guy following me. I went and sat with an older woman and she was confused. The guy sat with us! This was very unGhanaian! I then got harsh and yelled that he needs to go over and over. I mean, it was almost an hour of following me! He was all kind and friendly as if I wanted him to be my friend! I called Pastor Andrew and through the phone he told the guy to leave and again the guy was so polite and calm. UGH!!! Andrew told me to come to a conference center where he was having a meeting. So, I walked to the main road and the guy kept following and talking! Let me say, I never felt threatened. He never tried to touch me. I was not really scared until I kept walking to the road and realized this guy is probably crazy. I had a bad experience when I first came to Ghana with a crazy man. You just never know what they will do. Sooo, worry-ness kicked in. But, we were outside and I knew if it got bad I could take him (that is the farm girl in me haha) or I could run into someone's shop. Usually people are sitting outside but, because of the cooler weather and previous rain, people were not out and about like normal. Well, I get a yellow yellow and got in and the guy gets in next to me!! I kept saying to him how disrespectful he is and how he is insulting me and "GO!!" When we got to the center Pastor Andrew was waiting at the gate. Now, if you recall things I have told you about Pastor, you will know he is theeeeee most fun loving, laughing man you will ever meet. But on that day I saw a side I had never seen. He looked into the yellow yellow as I got out and started yelling at the guy in Dagbani. He told me to go inside so I waited past the gate. There was a tough security woman standing at the gate too. But, this guy tried coming in to the center!! Pastor had to push him and grab his shirt so that he would not enter. I know he wanted to hit him (but didn't). The security woman told me to go inside. By now, people inside and outside were gathering. It took a long 5-10 minutes for this guy to realize it would be a good idea to leave. As I sat down in the reception area I was thinking that it did affect me more than I thought. I was able to gather my thoughts, thank God and sit. When Pastor finished his meeting he took me part way home. Near the area where the guy met me I saw 2 men sitting. I went and asked them if they know that guy. One said he did. I asked if the guy was crazy. He said sometimes he is and sometimes he is not. They think he probably takes drugs. As I shared the story with my neighbor, she also said it is drugs- Tramadol, which is becoming popular.But I am fine! And I never felt like I could not handle this. I never felt trapped or like this guy was going to hurt me. And I do not worry about meeting him again. So, do not freak out. These things can happen in any country. I am fine. Let's praise God!I should probably start thinking of some goals for next week. Do you make goals?Love you. Thanks for praying!
People, People
It is a good thing I like people. I am with them all the time. I have had different people come thru my life this past week. I had a short termer named Eleana from UK. She is interested in missions and was going to come out with a team but they all backed out. She still came and went around with some of us to see what life is like here and if this is a place where God could use her. I really tried to be all excited about what life is like here but I know I was more on the "let's be real" sort of level. She took it all in a stride and was thankful for the time we missionaries spent with her.
When Eleana left, I had Charity at my house. Char is a hoot. She actually was a short termer around 2009 and has come back as a long termer. She is from Canada and behind her back Damary and I call her perfect. She just does everything well. And when she is frustrated or something she complains for one second and then talks about God and how good He is. AHHHH!! I need to be around her more :) We love her. She came thru and stayed with me a few days. We pray every couple weeks over the phone or internet so it was good to have a face to face time of prayer. 
Damary has been in Gushegu these past couple weeks so having people pop through was really nice. But we had a team meeting in Gushegu so I took some of the Ethiopian families (someone else took the other some) and we stayed for a few days.I know I have talked about the NE Indian missionaries I work with and the Ethiopian missionaries but in Gushegu there are also another group of missionaries with a different agency and they are from Holland.Fela and Puii's daughter, Grace celebrated her 4th birthday and they had a party for her after our meeting. What a party. Talk about people! There were 28 of us. And so many different cultures represented. And we all love Jesus. And there was amazing food! And it was fun! It was a lovely-lovely weekend.
When Eleana left, I had Charity at my house. Char is a hoot. She actually was a short termer around 2009 and has come back as a long termer. She is from Canada and behind her back Damary and I call her perfect. She just does everything well. And when she is frustrated or something she complains for one second and then talks about God and how good He is. AHHHH!! I need to be around her more :) We love her. She came thru and stayed with me a few days. We pray every couple weeks over the phone or internet so it was good to have a face to face time of prayer. Damary has been in Gushegu these past couple weeks so having people pop through was really nice. But we had a team meeting in Gushegu so I took some of the Ethiopian families (someone else took the other some) and we stayed for a few days.I know I have talked about the NE Indian missionaries I work with and the Ethiopian missionaries but in Gushegu there are also another group of missionaries with a different agency and they are from Holland.Fela and Puii's daughter, Grace celebrated her 4th birthday and they had a party for her after our meeting. What a party. Talk about people! There were 28 of us. And so many different cultures represented. And we all love Jesus. And there was amazing food! And it was fun! It was a lovely-lovely weekend.
Puii would not let me help her so I had ample time to rest. I feel ready for this week. We do not have any people staying with us this week. I told my team they need to really be tough on me and keep me accountable in using my time for language. I have no excuse this week. I am already thinking of where I will walk and who I will visit.BE PRAYING!!! May I get back on track with Dagbani!! It is almost September!! (Gasp!)
Day by Day
So, after last weekend I took Monday to rest. That was much needed and also I had a bug friend get into my belly causing me some discomfort every time I ate. Not Nice.On Tuesday, I picked up Mesfin and Dawit and we headed back to Buipe. We were really hoping to find some accommodation for them so they can get started with language learning and meeting people. It was not meant to be. We saw a couple places. One was too big. Another one, the toilet and bath were outside. Another one, we had to wait for the landlord to come but we saw the outside of the place and the men were ok with that. We waited an hour and then found a spot that serves drinks and we chilled down there. I taught them how to play Sparkle (dice game) and I was the loser! Right when we finished the man helping us told us the landlord said the place was just rented out. (sigh) We did stay the night at a guesthouse and we were also able to meet Diallo again. He thinks that he may have two leads for language helpers for the men. So, all was not lost. We headed back on Wednesday.Random story- I decided to go for a walk/run at the guesthouse we stayed at in the morning. It has a long, dirt road so I thought I would be alone. HA! The flies were my companions, and not nice companions :) I had to run at some point with my arms flailing around my head just to keep those nasty things off me. Gross. I felt like I was running like Phoebe from the FRIENDS TV show. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fS5wJKiwR4On Thursday, I went to the airport to pick up Yvonne!! Yay!! She was in the UK for 6 weeks and we really missed her. I cooked up a lunch and we got to her place and caught up from both sides of the world. It is so nice to have her back! In the afternoon, I found out Rafia, my seamstress Madam, had a baby boy. I saw her on Monday and she told me the baby came on Tuesday. When I saw her on Thursday, it was as if she never had a baby at all. She was walking around, laughing like she did not just deliver an 8 lb baby boy. Oy, the woman is strong. I forgot a lot of Dagbani but with all the people coming and going I could grasp some things. In the evening, I went to sit with some other ladies who I have not really seen (waving out my car window does not count) since I came back from Accra. I really have lovely ladies around me. I am thankful.On Friday, I went back to see Rafia. She now has 1 girl and 3 boys. Women were coming around to greet her and say congratulations. Sahada, the other apprentice, has been helping with cooking and washing. After spending some time with her I went to town. I did lots of shopping because I wanted to cook up a lot of meals for the next couple weeks. As I was finishing, I was like, "dude, where is all my money??" but then realized the month of August is half over and phewww I am ok. But August Is Half Over People!! Time goes so fast here. Then I think, "what do I have to show for it?" Nothing...(sigh)The best part of my week was Friday night talking to my sister and then able to do a 3 way call with my mom. They had a family reunion last weekend and I loved hearing all about it. And just hearing about summertime in Wisconsin is wonderful. And just hearing us laugh together is wonderful...I won't tell you if I cried when we hung up :)Saturday, I was ready to have a nice quiet day at home...and the morning was lovely because a nice rain was falling down. Things were cool, animals were quiet. It was perfect. But then...the men right over the wall from my bedroom window started putting on a zinc roof...O Ghana, Ghana, Ghana. There is always something.But, that is ok. I had to do lots of cooking. I made chickpea and chicken, orange-carrot chicken (and the oranges here are a different sweet, so this one will prob not taste so nice), tomato sauce, bread, and a beef roast. I was able to freeze them and now, I don't have to worry about food this week or even next week! Yay!I have a couple people coming thru this week. Need to do some Dagbani, of course. Keep praying. Never know what the week will bring.Thanks for praying! Thanks, thanks, thanks!
Yendi and Dinyogu
Thanks for praying for my weekend in Yendi, Dinyogu and Gushegu. We left Friday morning. We had safety in all the driving whether it was on a smooth paved road, a pothole-y road, or thru a corn field. About one hour away in Yendi, Pastor Andrew spoke to a group of young people from the district about giving and supporting the work of church and their pastors (who do not get paid). There were more than 200 people!
Then the next part of the time was about evangelism. It was quite short because the other topic took extra long with all the questions but they said next year they will make the conference longer to have more time :)We then headed to Gushegu to stay with Fela and Pui. They gave us amazing hospitality and then I slept right as my head hit the pillow. The next morning we went to church in Gushegu and I was so encouraged by the Word. People, the Word changes us and transforms us. LOVE ME SOME WORD!! Then we hung out a bit longer but knew eventually we would have to get back home to Tamale. We got home around 6pm.Again, thanks for praying for me!
Catching Up. Distractions.
Catching up. Distractions.I got a lot of things done last week so I could spend this week in language learning. Lots of admin, visiting the Ethiopians, random to-do list items, etc, etc. Then, I had a group of Ghanaians from Accra come up to stay with us on Friday morning because a church member, who now lives in Tamale, was married. It was a lovely engagement and wedding and thanksgiving service. As comfortable as I am living here in Ghana, I noticed I was more nervous about hosting Ghanaians. Maybe because my food is different from theirs, and it took me some time to like theirs, maybe they won't like mine? Or maybe because they are sooooo soooooo soooo hosptitable and serving while American culture is more "do whatever you want" "make yourself at home" "you do it". It is different. All the people just left yesterday.So, I was hoping to have a good language week starting Monday but I don't think that will happen. Another distraction that has come up and I need to deal with is my computer. Randomly, it will not turn on. I know I should have looked at this problem sooner but...as a middle child...we don't like confronting problems :) so, I keep hoping it will just go away. Well, yesterday I tried turning my computer on and it would just flash. Ei!!! I don't know what to do. I have a friend in Accra I can call but that is not much help. Thankfully, this morning it has turned on but I need to back everything up because who knows what will happen! OOOOOOO!!! I am so clueless and helpless in this area (sigh). "God, please heal my computer!" :)While our team leader is away, I am our Tamale treasurer. When I did a personality test, one thing that I found out was "not good at finances". YEP. SPOT ON. So, how did I get stuck with being the treasurer? I was the only one around at the time. I feel so bad for my teammates. I have been doing this role over a year now and I think I have two months where I did not mess up. It is so awful and really stresses me out and that has popped in this week too. Gotta love life! Oi!!I did listen to my recordings to say I did some language.I have also been preparing for giving a talk this weekend. You can be praying for that too. I have been trying to figure out what to say. I will be talking on "relationships". I will focus on having a strong relationship with the Lord, date only other believers, and remain pure. There will be a question and answer time but I told Pastor Andrew he may have to step in at that point. I don't know all about the "what is ok/not ok" in terms of dating and stuff. I guess I will learn this weekend!It's all about flexibility! Not always easy. Thanks for praying.
In The End, It Is All About Life and Peace
Of all the months I slack off from posting…so many things have happened. In a nutshell: I went to Chiana with Penny and Damary to celebrate, with the church, Pat’s farewell after 38 years of serving. I also had a great birthday with teammates. I was able to share to some friends the creation story and Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit and its consequences in DAGBANI!! I then traveled with Damary to Accra. I had two funerals to attend. One for Linda (age 36) and one for Aunt Theresa (age 68). I went to the morgue and the burial sites. I cried with friends and families. I stayed next to them. I helped wherever I could.Going to Accra, as fun as it is, brings me home exhausted. That is mostly my fault. In the in-between days of funeral things, I really should have rested. It was definitely more emotionally draining than I thought it would be. Instead of resting, I would call someone up and visit. My friends Daniel and Doris always feed me so well. My other friend always knows the newest restaurant. Church had times of prayer, which were so encouraging. Apex had birthday celebrations and ballroom dancing. I had to check out a cheeseburger place. Like I can say NO???[gallery ids="3435,3436,3438,3437,3439,3440,3441,3442" type="rectangular"]Damary and I came back to Tamale on the bus. I am not excited to be here. There were certain thoughts going thru my head while in Accra.
- People love me here (arrogant, I know). The fact that if I wanted, I could stay out every night with friends filled my heart with appreciation and fullness.
- I have deep relationships here. I lived here for 11 years. The youth I worked alongside are now working, dating, married, or whatever and I had some good heart talks with them. I pray I encouraged them as much as they encouraged me.
- Everyone keeps asking about me getting married so then my mind hangs on to the “why am I not married??” and wondering if something is wrong. My mind then latches on to some guy and wonders “what if…” Not a good road to go down.
- People here can understand me. People here have a bit of understanding of where I am from. People here have more education and can talk with me on the same level.
- Maybe I should work back here in Accra…no way. Well, maybe…No, you would hate it. Actually, it is not that bad…No, Tamale is much more relaxed. And my mind goes on with all this back and forth.
As I am back home, I call Tamale home, even though it does not feel like home. I call it home hoping that one day it will be home. So here, at home, I pray I would love this place. It is not easy or have all the conveniences of Accra. I do not have many friends here. I have to work so hard just to progress one step further in my ministry.As I let my mind wander to other what ifs and what elses and fantasies of living some other place…I sensed the Spirit nudge me, “Sherri, love me more than your desires. Have I ever made you regret?”As the bus rolled into Tamale last night, I was reminded that so many of these people are living without Christ and they are dying without Christ. I know the joys of knowing God. I have him with me everyday. Why do I not want to share that with people who have no clue? Isn’t it worth more than what I feel I am missing? I know I am not the most amazing missionary. I know many times I don’t know what to say or what I am doing. I know somedays other people could really do this better than me, but for some reason God wants me here. And, so I will sacrifice my desires daily. (So, easy to type but executing is a different story) I will learn this language and love people here, though as I type this tears fall because I have already failed numerous times. I feel I cannot do this but I will persevere. I will go on even though tomorrow I could choose a road that would give me an easier life.Don’t feel bad for me. I serve a living Savior who walks with me and speaks to the deepest parts of my heart. Don’t feel bad for me because I can’t get real creamy ice cream, I can get fufu. Don’t feel bad for me because I am single, the Spirit fulfills all my needs. Don’t feel bad for me because I can’t go to the theater and watch an exciting movie, my life is an adventure.I need more reminders of Truth. Romans 8:6 So letting the sinful nature control your mind leads to death but letting the Holy Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.Life and Peace. It is what I have. It is what many of my neighbors don’t have. Father, help me share.
Back In The Saddle Again
Back in the saddle again people! Woo Hoo!! I was out and about with language this week. Cheers to Yvonne and the Ethiopians for letting me have a chance to get to it. I am very thankful. I came home one day and I said to Damary, "I had a real language day. Like, for real, like, talking to people and everything!" (Now, don't get carried away with the talking to people...I still barely can hold a conversation.)I had a situation come up. I will not be specific. But it was something I thought I had surrendered and it came up very quickly. If I would have given myself a moment to pray and wait on the Lord, I hope I would have made a better decision. But I made a wrong decision. And then I couldn't let it go. It consumed my mind and I knew I had to surrender this again. AGAIN!! When will I learn?? It took me 3 days to surrender. 3?! It always humbles me when I see how big of a talker I am. I am probably one of the top best pharisees in the world :) I love telling people what to do and what I would do in a situation but then...I never take my own advice. I never listen to me. I just do what I want.Psalm 84:11 got me through it. God is my sun and shield. He will never withhold a good thing from me. I have had to repeat that several times a day. I will not feel guilty. I have confessed. I have given it to God. He will continue to love me and pour His grace on me. That is it.It looks like the Ethiopians may have found accommodation! Yay! Hopefully, we can help them with the lease and all that in the next few days. It is in walking distance of the school they chose. They have 2 apartments close together and the price was right. We are so thankful! Next, they have to fill their apartments with furniture and whatever else they will need. I will be busy again!I am praying that I can be strategic in my language. Even if I cannot do a whole chunk of a day walking around greeting and talking with people. Maybe just an hour or something. I have to keep going. It is so hard and I have to review so many things. It is so easy to let myself be discouraged BUT I refuse to go down that road of thinking.Keep on Praying!
Normal Life
In my Dagbani lessons, Pastor Andrew and I have been reading a few verses from the Bible. I try and learn the words I do not know. I want to try and read with a flow so if I was asked in church I could do it in a way people can follow, even if I don't always keep up with what I am reading. I am just doing the creation story. I have learned a simple way to say it and even have pictures when I go out and practice so many words I have heard before...it does not mean I use them or even understand them when someone else uses them in conversation but (sigh) small-small. 
Tuntaaya's mom's funeral was this week. I went and the girls came around me to say HI. During Bible study, we played games and I just tried to keep it lively.
I went sewing and Rafia said I may be able to start a skirt! Let's see how that goes.Our Tamale team went to Gushegu for a Northern team meeting and we stayed the weekend. The Ethiopians brought their coffee! They went out with Fela and Rema to a naming ceremony and we took some to the market. And, yes, I showed Asafash how to buy cloth :) Pui and Rachael also had their kids club and told the story of Moses. It was a full, but I rested, weekend. It was nice to get out of Tamale.
Tuntaaya's mom's funeral was this week. I went and the girls came around me to say HI. During Bible study, we played games and I just tried to keep it lively.I went sewing and Rafia said I may be able to start a skirt! Let's see how that goes.Our Tamale team went to Gushegu for a Northern team meeting and we stayed the weekend. The Ethiopians brought their coffee! They went out with Fela and Rema to a naming ceremony and we took some to the market. And, yes, I showed Asafash how to buy cloth :) Pui and Rachael also had their kids club and told the story of Moses. It was a full, but I rested, weekend. It was nice to get out of Tamale.
With the Ethiopians feeling a little more settled, they are going to wander around and with yellow-yellows to look for houses. Be praying they find good housing, close to the kid's school.I may not have an excuse NOT to do language, hardcore this week. #1- The weather is cooler. #2- I have a bit more time. #3-I had a restful weekend.My wound opened up again. I have to admit, I really don't care. I will put it on hold for now :) and just let it be (to the dismay of my nurse sister, and mother).Love you. Thanks for praying!
Hope Is In It
We had people staying with us from Sunday until Tuesday. It was a really great time. We went on yellow-yellows to town and did some used clothes shopping. We did some Ghana cloth shopping too, of course! The Ethiopians cooked their food for us and we loved it. Injera. Have you had it? It was good!
Tuesday and Wednesday were out looking at houses. Unfortunately, they were too expensive. Really nice but wayyy too much per month. (Sigh...) we will just keep looking.Earlier in the week my friend from Accra, Dominic called me. He called me the week earlier and told me his wife, Linda, went into the hospital. They did not know what was wrong. Their new little baby (one month old) was no longer able to breast feed because of all the drugs they were giving her. When he called me on Wednesday he said it was bad. He told me that the doctor told him, "your only hope is God." I told him we would pray and we were.He called me Thursday morning around 7am and told me, "God called Linda home." And then he started sobbing and then I started crying too. It was so hard. Linda and Dominic and I would all go to church together for about 3 years. I was in the choir with Linda and I helped Dominic with SS class at Fishpond Church. She was so young. It must have been a liver problem because Dominic said, before she went into a coma, her eyes were yellow.At 9am I was at a funeral for a mother of one of the girls in my Tuesday Bible study. I was on the verge of tears. I went and talked with Tuntaya afterwards and just told her I was sorry. I gave her some money too. As I turned to leave I knew I had to say something more. I found out her father died in January and her sister was saying things like how can God be loving etc, etc. So, I said to her, "God loves you. You need to remember this. All this stuff is very difficult but God still loves you. You need to say it out loud everyday." I saw her lip start to quiver and I knew if she would cry I would too so I hugged her and left.I feel that in the US death is so covered up. Someone comes and takes the body away and prepares it. Someone handles the details. The funeral is usually done with in 3 days and then that is it. In the southern part of Ghana, families keep the body in the morgue until they can organize and pay for a funeral. That can take up to a month to a year! In the north, they bury the body within the day and then within 3 days do a service around their house. If they are Christians, they wait for another time to do the funeral in the church, also, to get money together to pay for it. So, they have quite a time to think and grieve. They wail and cry and do not feel ashamed. Many times the families prepare the body for burial. It is more "in your face" here than at home. I see people going to the cemetery almost every day. People are always praying for long life. (During language, I am always praying for God to take me now-take me now!)Also, with Baaba's mom passing away a couple of weeks ago, she was telling me she has been grieving and it has been getting better daily, but the separation is so hard. And that is it. We are separated from these souls until heaven. (Thankfully, all these people who died were believers.) Romans 8 says "our bodies long to be released from sin and suffering" and "creation will join with God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay" that will be a glorious time.What do people hope in when they don't believe in Jesus? I just cannot understand. My mind rests in His hope. We, who have accepted Jesus, have hope. HOPE PEOPLE!!!Love you. Life doesn't get any easier, does it? Praising God for HOPE!!!P.S. Rafia told me after looking at my sewing lines that next week I could start a skirt. Wooooo!!! There is hope there too ;)
Serving, With A Side Dish of Crabby
Ok, soooo...it was not a serious language week...shamefully, I admit. I really did have big plans about getting back into good quiet times, eating right and exercising and language...but 3 out of 4 is not bad, eh? The language...I don't know. There is a block in my mind or something. I think I have already forgotten stuff from level 2 and wonder how can I progress to level 3 when I need to relearn level 2 and, dare I say, level 1??!! You may think I am exaggerating but I am not. Sad. Disappointing. I'm angry at myself and it came out it many ways. On Monday, after I had this great quiet time with Jesus, I was practically yelling in the car at whatever circumstances were around. Then at home, we had people stop by and I had to totally fake it in smiling and making them feel welcome. How horrid. What is up with that?I did go for sewing on Tuesday and it was great. I did not say much but I was thankful my feet, at least, took me there. Small-small as they say here. My week was filled up with visiting some schools with the Ethiopians and looking/finding landlords and houses for rent. Nothing yet, but we still have people to talk with. It took me awhile to find my place. I am glad when we see a place and find someone else around who knows of another place. I think that is moving forward and that seems to keep happening to us. Yay.
In my morning exercises I have gotten back to my memorizing Romans 8. That chapter is so great. I have to keep going back to it in my crabby times. Verses 10-12 are my fave so far. I also say the verses out loud when lies want to take hold of my thinking. I will take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ!Love You.I will try, yet again!
Mixin' It Up Some More
THE.ETHIOPIANS.HAVE.LANDED :)They made their way to Tamale by bus and Yvonne took Dawit, Eshetu and their daughter, Abigiya and I took Mesfin, Asafansh, and their two kids Barnabas and Naomi to our house. They have been in Accra for about a month and were ready to move out and get up here.They stayed with each of us for a few days and then on Friday they moved into Dooshik and Gaeok's home (they are on home assignment). While Mesfin and his family stayed with us, they served us authentic, legit Ethiopian coffee. Now, it is too bad I do not like coffee but I do love how it smells. I can tell their coffee is one of their pride and joys! Maybe one day I will enjoy it :) We started them with shopping and cultural do's and don'ts, and figuring out transportation. Greet people, don't use your left hand, wear shirts with sleeves, take this yellow-yellow here, etc, etc... The rains have come and in the mornings things were so nice and cool but by 11 am things were not so nice and cool. ughhh...what a nice welcome for them (along with some random power outages, of course). It takes a lot out of you to show people around. I am always checking to make sure they understand or asking questions to see if they got everything they needed or how to respond to people.
It is always interesting to hear from new people. Their perspective is very much of their home culture and "how we do it" and "in my country...". We all were like that. During my first time in Ghana, I remember a missionary asking me where home is. I replied, "Medford" as if she was supposed to know where that is! She was like, "Where is that?" Then it dawned on me, she does not know my tiny little world of Medford in Wisconsin in America! How is that possible??! That was my first brief insight into letting my eyes be opened to the bigger world. I had to tell her it was in Wisconsin. (She was American so she knew that much). I remember feeling small.Thank goodness we have God's promises that he knows how many hairs we have on our head. He knows where I am from. He loves Wisconsin :) That means he also loves Indians, and Brits, and Ethiopians. I can't believe I get to work alongside them all. I know it is not going to be easy to hear someone's point of view or take on things but so far this team has been very humble to one another. We have listened. We have stayed silent on some issues. We have confronted. We have built one another up. I never would have thought this would be my life. When I started raising support to be a missionary I only considered working with Ghanaians. I never thought about the other people on the team I would be working with. It is a privilege.This next week??? I know we have to help the new families find some housing but I hope to get out to do some serious language learning too. Let's see. Thanks for praying! Love you.
One Week Goes Faster Than the Next
Give me a chance to catch my breath, k?Ok, ready.Monday I went out for a good language day. The great thing was that I came home NOT angry. Praise the LORD!! Thanks for praying. On Tuesday, I went to visit Rafia. I told her I would travel to Accra to see the doctor. She asked me if the doctor gave me medicine to heal my wound. I said there is no medicine. She said when women get C-sections the doctor gives medicine to heal the wound. Hmmm...I did not know how to disagree with her and say I am sure the medicine is for something else. All very interesting.Wednesday at 5 am, Salome and I went to the bus station to head down to Accra. It was nice to travel with a friend! About 2/3 way down we stopped at a station in Kumasi. We got out to stretch, grab some snacks and go to the bathroom. When we got back to the bus we looked at where everyone else was looking...towards the only exit. At the exit was a HUGE TRUCK, like semi-trailer truck. It was broken down. Exactly in front of the exit. Exactly the time the bus parked in the station. HA!! These things always happen in Ghana...hence my blog name "'dis be ghana". People were getting all cranky and yelling at the driver. Like, he could do anything. People went out and looked at the truck and talked with the driver of it. These trucks are in terrible shape and usually the owners just bribe police so that they can keep these beasts on the road. Anyways, thankfully, the truck was able to reverse just enough for the bus to get thru and we were back on the road. At our last stop, about 2 hours from Accra, we got out. It was a short stop and the bus was honking for everyone to get back on. The man in the seat in front of us was not back. The bus attendant (yes, like flight attendant but on a bus...wooooo!!) and driver went looking for him. They tried calling him (they all take our number when we buy a ticket) and he didn't pick. So, they just decided to leave. Well, about 5 minutes down the road, the bus pulls over. Salome and I were watching a little video and I noticed we pulled over but did not think about it. UNTIL, a very angry man runs onto the bus yelling at the driver!! We decided live entertainment was better than our video since we had front row seats and WOW did the yelling go on. The bus attendant got into the middle to keep saying to the driver, "Driver, keep going. Focus on the road. Focus on the road." The people in seats even in the back were yelling at the man and the man was yelling back. Finally, people must have gotten tired and they quieted down. Such adventures on public transportation!
The Ethiopian families will be coming up to Tamale this week. Yvonne will have one family stay with her and Damary and I will host another family until we can find some sort of temporary accommodation. They will need to be orientated to life up here. We think that since they are African they know a lot but we are finding out they did not know what yam was or even green pepper. So, I think we really need to start with the basics. They did have a lot of orientation while they have been in Accra so it is not from the beginning but more of the practical stuff like how to get a taxi, buy food in the market, etc, etc.Got another big week ahead!!Thanks for praying!
Back to Buipe
Off the bus and onto a new one is how the week went.We got back from SLC on Saturday and I had a couple days to unpack, review some Dagbani, do some admin things and then pack again and head back to Buipe. Ok, so, not as fast as that. But still, let me have my dramatic flair, ok?My Auntie and my mom are making plans to visit me in October!! AHH!! Really, you cannot even know my excitement. I mean, off the charts WOO HOOOO!!! I should really have a smile on my face all the time. As I was telling Rafia about it in simple Dagbani, I learned the word for my mother's sister. I know I need to learn it because I will be telling everyone they are coming. I hope by October I can say it properly :)On Tuesday evening I led my first Bible study here in Tamale. There are about 8 girls ages 14-18 from a church outside of Tamale. Some can read Dagbani and some cannot. I have to use a translator. His name is Samuel and he was the one who asked if I could do this. I am using a Bible study book called Foundations of Faith. I really do not know where these girls are at spiritually so I will just start at the beginning. They seem like they really want to be there and study. That makes me want to be there too! I taught two things: God created all things and God knows all things. By the end of the night I could say those two things in Dagbani because I kept asking them what are we learning, what are we learning. Hopefully, they will learn things and I will learn things too. So far, so good!Tuesday night our Ethiopian teammates came up. Just Mesfin and Dawit because we would not have room in my car to drive around their wives and children. So, for now it was to give Mesfin and Dawit and idea of the north and to look at school and housing options available. On Wednesday, Yvonne set up several appointments at different schools. We were able to talk to some principles and get a look at classrooms. I was really amazed at what Tamale has. Damary cooked dinner for us Wednesday evening and we found out Dawit is a famous singer in Ethiopia. I said he and Damary should sing together because she is also famous in her area too.On Thursday, Mesfin, Dawit, Yvonne and I headed to Buipe. When we arrived we talked with some missionaries, Amy and Terry. It started to rain so we had to hold off on some plans. But by afternoon Dzallo, a Fulani believer, came over to say HI. Did I mention that the Ethiopians will be working with Fulani people? Yes, they will be :) Dzallo answered any questions they had and told them a little bit about himself. We then went to town and saw a school and met the principle there. We saw a couple houses that are available for rent too. I cannot imagine what was going thru the guys' heads because it was so much information and English is not their first language and everything is so new. But they did well.When we got back to Amy and Terry's we heard that a truck had crashed into a light pole and most of Buipe power was knocked out. So, Terry started the generator but found that was broken. Then he tried the solar panels and that wasn't working either! Thankfully, the rain had come and it really cooled things off. We were able to smile and had a lovely candlelight dinner outside with no bugs. I even slept well because of the cool breeze.The next morning we went over to Dzallo's place. He was not there. His father was there and some women, so we sat down and waited. His father tried talking to us but we can't speak the Fulfulde language. BUT...then he spoke Twi!! So, I tried to pull out from the cobwebs of my mind some Twi and was able to understand that Dzallo's son had malaria and needed to go to the hospital. I was able to tell the father that these men are from Ethiopia and will be living here. OOOO my brain was in such a mess trying to not mix it with Dagbani!! But, we made do, and just a bit later Dzallo came. Afterwards, we went to meet with Pastor Issa who's wife is Fulani. He just started a school and so we met him out there. There were also some pastors that Issa invited because apparently there has been some small acts of vandalism on the school. People don't want a Christian school so they are making it known. Issa had the pastors (and us) pray for God's wisdom and protection. It was a beautiful time to be part of the body of Christ.
We got some lunch and headed back to Tamale. The guys were out as Yvonne, Amy, and I chatted up a storm. I am sure their heads were full with all the info, exhausted from all the travels and meetings with people. For dinner on Friday, Penny was in town and all of us went out to eat. Damary and I thought we would run over to our tailor to pick up some dresses before that. He lives on a very muddy, potholey road and on the way back to town we got stuck. I have never gotten my 4x4 Nissan X-trail stuck before. But my car was tilted and the tires on the left side could not get planted well enough to get the other side out. It took about 4 men and 1.5 hours but they did it. I just felt like a pathetic damsel in distress wondering what to do next if they can't get the car out. (sigh) But we thank GOD for his help! We were able to meet everyone at the restaurant just as the food was being set down. Such great timing :)I have another week of crazy. I made an appointment to see the doctor who did the procedure on my cyst. It still has not healed well. I will head down to Accra for a few days.Love you. Thanks for praying!
SLC 2018
Missed last week. I was soooo busy. I was out and about with language, trying to get the last organizational touches on SIM Ghana's Spiritual Life Conference (SLC), and finish up house/email-y things. There are just not enough hours. For language, I went to Rafia's. I used the charcoal iron at her shop. So fascinating. Then, I went to the grinding mill with Wasila where she dumps in her ground nuts (we would call it peanuts) and then the machine turns it into paste (we would call it peanut butter). Can't get much healthier or fresher!
One sweet thing my team did for Yvonne, Damary and I was that they laid hands on us and prayed. As each of us shared our testimony individually about what has happened in the past year, though we did not talk about it with each other, ours were very similar. We are all having a difficult time in Tamale. The people, the language, the heat. Our team has been so compassionate towards us and will continue to keep us in their prayers. Keep us in your prayers too!Life just keeps on moving. This week a couple of the Ethiopian missionaries will come up and see things for themselves. Yvonne and I will take them to see schools and any housing options in Tamale and Buipe. I also want to get some language in...not sure how that will all go. I also need to find where we pay our water bill--we just got our first one after 1.5 years!! HAAA.. Then I need to get a new residence permit, buy some food, email lots of people and just get back into some sort of a routine.Love you.
Buipe
April is HOT. Of course it is. It is hot season, silly. It makes for a sweaty life.Ok, so last week and this week--I spoke at a Women's conference. I did the morning devotional. I did not think it was that long but since it had to be translated into Dagbani and Konkomba it took long...the woman in the front row was sleeping. Then again, she was sleeping for the speaker after me too, so I won't take it personally :)
I have been going around trying to see what churches are like for Dagomba people. I would like to help a Dagomba congregation and serve however God leads. I find that in Tamale city, there are churches, but they don't necessarily reach out to Dagombas. I have met with pastors from different churches and am finding out Dagbani speaking churches will most likely be on the outskirts of town.I met a Presyterian Reverend named Jasper. He allowed me to come with him as he is over 10 churches. We first visited a village that has no church and we, with two other men, went to greet the elders and get permission to meet in the future. The elder was ok with it but said the chief is away and he would be the main guy to talk with. We then went a little way from there and met under a tree with about 20 believers. They sat on benches and had a drum. They sang, gave announcements and pastor shared from the Word. It was beautiful! They told me one of the young men and one of the old women accepted the Lord last weekend at Easter. Then we traveled to another village. They met in a church. Another pastor was preaching. There were about 50 people there and they met in a classroom.Afterwards, I spoke to one of the men who was with us. His name is Samuel. He is a leader at one of the churches. I asked him about youth activity and Bible studies. He invited me to a Bible study in the village on Wednesday. He even called me that night to confirm the time and that I would consider teaching. Ei!!! This guy is too fast!! I just told him I would come and observe. I did go on Wednesday. It was a lively Bible study and the men were very talkative. There were 7 girls there who did not say a word. I later told Samuel that if I would come I would like to meet with these girls. Let's see what happens!On the Monday and Tuesday before that, Yvonne and I went to Buipe. It is a city over an hour away. We have missionaries from Ethiopia coming to work with Fulani in the Buipe area. Yvonne and I went to check it out and see what they had for housing, schools, hospital care, markets etc, etc. We met two American couples. One of the wives, Amy, took us around and helped us collect a lot of information. I was so thankful for her! It was also nice spending time with Americans. Again, I found myself talking louder and just being more...American. I can't explain what that means. Just, that, I could see a difference :)
I have been going around trying to see what churches are like for Dagomba people. I would like to help a Dagomba congregation and serve however God leads. I find that in Tamale city, there are churches, but they don't necessarily reach out to Dagombas. I have met with pastors from different churches and am finding out Dagbani speaking churches will most likely be on the outskirts of town.I met a Presyterian Reverend named Jasper. He allowed me to come with him as he is over 10 churches. We first visited a village that has no church and we, with two other men, went to greet the elders and get permission to meet in the future. The elder was ok with it but said the chief is away and he would be the main guy to talk with. We then went a little way from there and met under a tree with about 20 believers. They sat on benches and had a drum. They sang, gave announcements and pastor shared from the Word. It was beautiful! They told me one of the young men and one of the old women accepted the Lord last weekend at Easter. Then we traveled to another village. They met in a church. Another pastor was preaching. There were about 50 people there and they met in a classroom.Afterwards, I spoke to one of the men who was with us. His name is Samuel. He is a leader at one of the churches. I asked him about youth activity and Bible studies. He invited me to a Bible study in the village on Wednesday. He even called me that night to confirm the time and that I would consider teaching. Ei!!! This guy is too fast!! I just told him I would come and observe. I did go on Wednesday. It was a lively Bible study and the men were very talkative. There were 7 girls there who did not say a word. I later told Samuel that if I would come I would like to meet with these girls. Let's see what happens!On the Monday and Tuesday before that, Yvonne and I went to Buipe. It is a city over an hour away. We have missionaries from Ethiopia coming to work with Fulani in the Buipe area. Yvonne and I went to check it out and see what they had for housing, schools, hospital care, markets etc, etc. We met two American couples. One of the wives, Amy, took us around and helped us collect a lot of information. I was so thankful for her! It was also nice spending time with Americans. Again, I found myself talking louder and just being more...American. I can't explain what that means. Just, that, I could see a difference :)
One of these ladies gave us a Tamarind drink. And my neighbor gave me a Tamarind drink. I had no idea what this was! Damary knew it is a seed and has had it a lot of times in India. I was able to make it and it tastes like apple cider. YUM! One gal from Switzerland took a drink and said, "it reminds me of Christmas!" 
It looks gross but it is refreshing after a hot day. You boil water and add this ball and let it soak for about 20 minutes then add cinnamon, sugar and a bit of ginger...voila!Still plugging away at Dagbani. In regards to my attitude, I feel the fog lifting. Thanks for praying!
It looks gross but it is refreshing after a hot day. You boil water and add this ball and let it soak for about 20 minutes then add cinnamon, sugar and a bit of ginger...voila!Still plugging away at Dagbani. In regards to my attitude, I feel the fog lifting. Thanks for praying!
O So Crabby
One thing that gets me thru the day is my time with Jesus in the morning. But, three days this week I just could not put my whole heart into it. It was me. It was my bad attitude. It was just ugh and frustrating!Well, then, on Thursday I was like, "Ok, no more of this" and I gave Jesus my heart and sat down with Him and we had a such a sweet time together...Then, I went to town with Damary. I could barely talk to people. I had to buy something and it was like it was my only mission in life. When I got back into a yellow-yellow to go home this man next to us was kindly asking us in Dagbani where we are going. I said, without even looking at him, in English, "we are going home". He asked like three times and Damary kindly said in Dagbani that we were going home. I just was so angry. For what???!!! I don't know... then we almost get home and some cute kids come running to us calling our names. I was thankful they didn't call us "white person, white person or siliminga, siliminga" but our names. But then, they try pushing their way into our gate. They would never-evah do that with a Ghanaian. It is very disrespectful. We actually had to push them out of the door. It was awful. One girl had a tire she was playing with and I took it. That made them stop and then cry to have it back. I said you are being very disrespectful. I will take it to your mother. (I know their moms.) They were so angry but we were so angry too! Maybe there could have been a better way to handle that, I don't know. I did go later and give it to the girl's mother. The mother told me her children don't respect anyone. (sigh)We have some guests, one came yesterday and our power went off around 6pm. We had a nice candlelight dinner. Really, I have to say it is not romantic when you are all sweaty and hot. But thankfully, the light came back on. Unfortunately, it went off at 9pm and did not come back until 10.30am the next day!!! I was happy Penny had our battery powered fan. I don't know how she would have slept otherwise because let-me-tell-you I did not sleep! I went outside under a mosquito net and it was bearable but then the chemical in the net made me itchy the rest of the night and today. It was just one of those things I did not need, ya know? But, let me rejoice that our power came back . Our other guest arrived and I am hoping we don't have power out again tonight. (Please, Jesus NOOOOOOOO!!)But one way I got thru the night was I remembered at Christmas Mom and Dad gave me a little gift. It was a little fan you can plug into your phone. I was so excited when I remembered that. BUT THEN...I saw it was for IPhones only and I have an Android. UGHHH SAD!!! BUT THEN...I knew somewhere I had an IPod and guess what???! IT WORKED!!! And I didn't even have to use my phone battery. PRAISE THE LORD. (Talk about and up and down night, eh?) 
I don't want to sound like a big downer but there are times where I am just not too chippy. I don't want to pretend and make it seem life is flowers when it is not. But thankfully, Jesus is ALWAYS with me, whether I acknowledge His presence or not.Truth, baby. Truth.
Salome Visited
Tune in for my regular scheduled program starting next week...This week we had a lovely guest named Salome stay with us. She is a short term missionary from Switzerland but has lived in Jerusalem most of her life since her parents are missionaries there. She is probably one of the most mature 20 year olds I have ever met. She is so capable and independent. She is helping in Gushiegu doing children's work and a whole lot of other things from January until May. We told her that if she ever needed a break to come over to Tamale. And so she did.She arrived on Monday. I took her shopping in Tamale on Tuesday and then Wednesday Yvonne, Damary, Salome and I went to a pool to chill. It was lovely, especially since the weather has degrees in the 3 digits!!! Ugh... She headed back to Gushiegu on Thursday. She was attacked by ants in our house one night but other than that I think she was able to rest.It was also nice for me to get away from language learning, though I am speaking Dagbani of course, as we go to town and such. I am psyching myself up that this next week and the rest of the month will be serious Dagbani times!!Though, I had a time away from language I still found myself angry. In the car yesterday I said to Damary, "I am so angry and have no reason to be!" We both are memorizing Romans 8 and I said let's start saying our verses. I need to be surrounded by truth and have truth in my mind. It helped...as God's Word usually does :)Love you. Hope all is well! Thanks for praying!
Easter 2018
Every morning, well, most mornings anyways, I start with my time with Jesus. Praying and talking to Him-praying, thanking, asking. It goes so well. He teaches me from the Bible and I am really learning things. But then...I walk out the door.I turn into a different person. Like, I forget how much I am loved and therefore should love others. It's like my eyebrows cinch together and I find myself yelling at kids, "don't disrespect me, don't disrepect me!" I called a man "stupid" under my breath and my friend heard. Stupid is very insulting to someone. Where are these things coming from? The Bible will say, what is in your heart comes out of your mouth. Yikes. It's true.The week was rough. It was hot, language did not seem to improve. I found one day I came home happy but then realized it was because I was doing random-errand-list things and not much language. Language really sucks me dry. I can't find a balance with it. It is so consuming.I do have highlights. Like being with Rafia and sewing. Like hearing something someone said and realizing I can respond without a 1 minute of hesitation. Like, not doing language on Friday because of Good Friday. (Another reason to call it good:))Not going to sit and whine. Life is hard. I will rejoice that I serve a risen Savior. One who loves me and walks with me. One who loves me unconditionally and gives me brothers and sisters around the world. I am going to choose thankfulness, though, I really just want to cry and go home.Here are some pics from our Easter Weekend Program:
God is always good. God is Love. The joy of the Lord is my strength. Holding on to truth this week.Love you.