no turkey! no ham! not even snicker salad or sparkling grape juice, what will i do! with 3 weeks til Christmas and my own American festivities of thanksgiving and even black friday come and gone. other than my loved ones and the smells of our traditional foods what might you think i am still missing? if you guessed the cold, you are wrong. believe it or not it gets rather chilly here morning and late evening but of course midday is still a frying pan! if you guessed the caroling, wrong yet again. a few of my british friends and i just so happened to put a smile on a few more Nigerian faces than usual as we drove along with our windows down and the sound of Christmas resounding! now if you guessed the s-n-o-w, i would say you know me exceptionally well. no matter how much i spent the last 3 months out of the country dreaming of a white Christmas i am almost certain the only pinch of that i will be getting this year is that of my own reflection...or from a spray can! i guess i'll deal!:)
laugh with me as i inform you that i have done a couple of geographical lessons with my reading clinic students, who would have thought that targeting an interest like that of demographics could actually help a child increase in literacy? not me, until now! one of my students that began with just the capacity to write sentences is now into full paragraphs while another of mine at a lower level of reading and writing is beginning to put sounds together effectively and even build small, small sentences. another point of humor as i've got students using my American-Nigerian accent now in reading stories with me and one even made a point of reminding me that 'Aunty only your people in white-man's land will understand me. if i go to the market they will say, who is this, he doesn't know how to speak!"
a friday night of food, fellowship, and American style worship quickly reminded me that "in everything, give thanks" (1 Thessalonians 5:18). an international food fair where i ironically helped out the UK table rather than the USA, i overjoyed in getting a taste of Heaven seeing people of numerous nations, tribes, people groups, and tongues join together. and i must admit my favorite part came with the sound of music from each, along with dancing...my favorite of course being those in Spanish! seeing the work of countless young and old craftsman at a Christmas craft sale warmed my heart as i was reminded of how our Creator God provides each and every being with skills just as unique and wonderful as the other. a British 'bonfire night' brought back delightful memories of my own 4th of July celebrations. also what fond high school theater reminiscing came from watching a revised fairy tale drama production. and to add to all of that, what a joy in hearing the experiences of Witcliffe missionaries in translating the word of the Lord from one language to another especially when it arrives on the personal level to the home village of a friend, praise God for their ability to get that much closer to reaching the ends of the earth with the Scriptures!
before their departure, a retired short-term Dutch Canadian missionary couple reminded me of the significance of going beyond just merely acknowledging His grace and our need to respond with a lifestyle of walking by faith as they shed light again on how His love calls for active obedience. in that i recalled my bearing witness to His answered prayers and orchestration of my own steps prior to even considering going overseas to the planning that went into coming here to the most recent clarity on when to return. also in this, thank our Father with me for the unexpected blessing of planting just the right type of relationship growths along the way...and for successful video calls with family members, friends, and loved ones in the States and even Bangladesh! after all, when it comes to dependence on a generator for power and sketchy net waves you realize what ‘full reliance’ on Christ for such small yet significant opportunities really looks like! i can’t even begin to explain to you the joy of receiving a simple letter, email, word of encouragement, prayer concern, or notice of the efforts your making on behalf of caring for, loving, and reaching those experiencing a void of my absence. may we grow to understand the depths of His love by the taming of our tongues (James 3) through the careful application of the living and active word of Truth (Hebrews 4). In Him, Beth Rose
specific requests and praises:
1. as the snow creates restrictions in mobility for some of you, be reminded of my own limitations and my missions need for discernment in the this season of celebration
2. allergy resistance; their heavy reoccurrence kept me from joining my Nigerian church family today BUT led me to a more international service
3. a wheelchair distribution to Open Doors has brought about great joy as well as sadness as the recipients said their 'goodbye's to their Australian physical therapist. pray for consistency in their care
4. humble hearts from Christians worldwide that are taking a stab at making a difference in the lives of our loved ones, neighbors, and strangers; that our words and acts would be His rather than our own
5. continued confidence in knowing His timing in making sense of my present and future decisions
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still wanting to but not receiving my monthly prayer letters?
contact me at bdekam@crcnapartners.org
a challenging point to ponder from the mouth of “my” Nigerian family:
if we agree and live solely by the statement 'do what works best for you' rather than thinking/feeling/acting in accordance with the word of God do we not realize that at some point we become intolerant to Christianity because in being tolerant to all things we become intolerant to the statements of Scripture…
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