Fudgesicles

I know this post will not be very interesting to those experiencing cool weather right now but for those who live in hot climates such as us you may want to try this.  October is the hottest month here in Zambia.  There are no clouds, it's dry, and it is very hot!  The other day Hannah came to me and said, "Mom, I just want something cold."  So, I looked up a recipe to make something cold and we landed on fudgesicles.  Here is the recipe:

Fudgesicles
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tblsp.cornflour
3 Tblsp. cocoa
2 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 Tblsp. butter

Cook sugar, cornflour, cocoa and milk until thickened, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat; add vanilla and butter.  Freeze in small paper cups or popsicle molds.  (Makes 6 1/2 cup popsicles) 
Then enjoy on a hot day!!

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering

The 2011 theme is “His heart, His voice, His hands – I am Southern Baptist missions.” It reminds us that as followers of Jesus, we – the Church – are called to be the body of Christ. We are His heart, His hands and His voice in the midst of a world filled with unreached peoples. We are part of the task to fulfill the Great Commission. And although we Southern Baptists have been praying, giving and going for 160 years, the task is far from finished.


Now is the time to take a fresh look at the challenges ahead and be ready to finish the task of reaching all peoples. Here’s a global snapshot of the work ahead of us:

• 6,744 people groups are considered unreached (less than 2 percent profess a personal relationship with Jesus Christ; as reported April 2011)
• 3,789 people groups are not engaged at all with the Gospel (as reported April 2011)
• More than half the world’s people live in cities. Most unreached people groups likely are represented in the world’s urban centers.
• 1.5 billion Muslims make up 22 percent of the world’s population

There is much work to be done. With more than 45,000 churches in the Southern Baptist Convention, the task is doable, but it will take all of us – starting with our your church!

Think your gift to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering® won’t make a difference? Every penny given to Lottie Moon is used to help support about 5,000 Southern Baptist missionaries serving overseas. Last year, those missionaries reported 360,876 baptisms and 29,237 new churches!  That is great news!  Don't you want to be a part of that?

The 2011 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering® goal is $175 million. That was also the goal for 2010 and 2009, but receipts for those years totaled $145.6 million and $148.9 million, respectively. These offering shortfalls have resulted in restriction of new missionaries being appointed.

I know it may seem early to be thinking about giving to The Lottie Moon Christmas Offering but really it will be here before you know it.  Please prayerfully ask God what He would have you to give this year to this offering.

To give online you can visit: 

https://netcommunity.imb.org/SSLPage.aspx?pid=229

What is your Giant?

For most of us, we go through seasons in our life when we are insecure about who we are, what we look like, or maybe we worry about what our future will hold.  We learn from the Bible that God has a purpose and plan for our lives.  We all face trials and challenges in our faith.  Being a Christian does not mean we will not have problems.  We don't get a "pass" on trials and neither should we want to.  It is through these trials that we grow closer to God and become more like Him.  Yesterday, I went to Bethlehem Baptist Church in one of the compounds of Lusaka.  I was so excited to be teaching women again.  It is something I have really missed since moving from Chongwe.  There were 20 women in attendance.  As we sang together I couldn't help but smile.  I was where I was supposed to be! 
I shared the story of David and Goliath and talked about how we as Christians are sometimes like the children of Israel in that when we hear threats of evil we often cry and retreat so we do not have to face our problems.  I tried to portray to these women that God is in control of each day of our lives and he can empower us to defeat any enemy which comes against us.  We only need to cry out to Him and trust that He is able to deliver us. 
The bible says that Goliath was 9 ft. tall.  That is a huge giant!  I can imagine that the children of Israel were afraid of him.  I would have been too!  However, David made the choice to not look at the size of the giant but at the size of His God.  So, instead of running away in fear, he went out to meet his enemy.  We all know that because David did not run away, Goliath was killed.  So, if God was big enough and powerful enough to bring down David's giant, He's still big enough and powerful enough to bring down our giants.  God has not changed.  He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow!  If we choose to focus on the giants in our life-we will stumble and fall but if we focus on God-our giants will fall.  
I had the women write on a piece of paper whatever they felt like was a giant in their life and they brought them up and placed them face down.  I taped them to a box and read them out loud.  We then all got on our knees and prayed for God's strength and help to defeat these giants in our lives.  After we prayed we went outside for a little visual and hands on reminder.  I brought with me a slingshot and some stones.  We then all took turns aiming at the box with all of our giants taped to it.  As you can see from the pictures below we drew quite a crowd of kids.  The women loved doing this and they were so funny.  They would cheer for one another when they would hit the box and slap hands with one another.  Then if they missed they would say, "second chance, second chance."  What a beautiful picture of how we should be as Christians encouraging those around us to face those giants and not run in fear or give up.  Let us cheer one another along in our Christian journeys.

 The women wrote down things like poverty, sickness, alcohol in the family, worry, and fear for their giants.

 They were so excited when they would hit the box!

As a side note I wanted to share something that happened earlier in the day before I went to teach.  As I was preparing to go I needed some good stones to take with me so I went out in our driveway and asked Anton are yard worker and man who just prayed to receive Christ a few weeks ago if he would help me to find some good stones for a slingshot.  I'm sure he thought I may have been a little weird so I did what I normally do and started talking to him explaining what I was doing.  I asked him if he had ever heard of the story of David and Goliath and he had not.  I then shared that story with him.  Here are his words to me after hearing the story. "Can you tell me where it is in the Bible so I can go and read it again. This is a very good story.  I see from that story that God used a young boy to defeat that giant.  That means even me, I can be strong in the Lord if I put my trust in Him.  David wasn't old or well educated and he was able to bring down that giant.  I am very encouraged by this story."  Praise God!!  Please continue to pray for Anton to grow in his relationship with Christ.  Also, pray for these women of Bethlehem Baptist Church to remember that mental picture of using a slingshot to bring down their giants the next time they find themselves face to face with another giant.

Visit to the Western Province

Recently we traveled out to the western province of Zambia to visit the missionaries out in that area.  Our first trip was to visit the Lowes who serve in Lukulu which is about a 7 hour drive from Lusaka during the dry season but about a 10 hr. drive during the rainy season.  After we left there we drove about 3 hours to Kaoma where the Smiths live.  We visited with them a few days and then traveled on another 2 hours to visit with Melissa Frady in Mongu.  While visiting these different places we are able to experience a little bit of their lives in the places that they serve.  Below are some pictures that I took while we were in the western province.  Please pray for these 3 units of missionaries as they plant churches, disciple believers, and live in community with others.  Pray they would be a light in the darkness and that others would see Jesus in them.

Robyn teaching all these kids who come to their home every Wed. afternoon to hear bible stories and play a game.  Sometimes they have as many as 80 kids show up.  Imagine the impact this will have in that community as these children grow up and perhaps one day follow Jesus as a result of hearing these bible stories. 

Jeff holding a little boy named Junior.  He was sacked out.  Jeff  handed him off to Kevin during the game time and then Kevin handed him off to me.  He slept through it all!

Robyn telling a bible story

After the bible story time the kids played a game called sharks and fish.  The kids seemed to enjoy it as you can tell.

Hannah, Hadassah, Zoe, and Levi

The Lowe family-Levi, Jeff, Hadassah, Robyn, and Zoe serving in Lukulu, Zambia.

I love this sign! "The town of plenty"

This is the Smith family-Mike, Amy, Evie, and Tyler.  They serve in Kaaoma, Zambia.

The girls went swimming down at the river and had a blast!

Chipango, Hannah, and Evie all wrapped up after swimming.

The Smiths built this bathroom for their guests and the family that lives on their property with them.  They did a great job!

This is a little guesthouse that the previous missionaries built on their property a few years ago.  Kevin and I got to stay in here.

We were able to go to church with the Smiths while we were in Kaoma.  We had a great time of worship with this small church.  The inside was packed and people were sitting outside as well.

Melissa Frady serves in Mongu, Zambia.  There is another single lady, Gerri Helton who also serves in Mongu but she is on her stateside assignment now.  She will be back in Zambia later in October.

 As you travel around in the states there are so many places to pull over and grab a drink, a snack, or even a meal.  Traveling in Zambia is not like that at all.  I took a couple of pictures of where we stopped.  We bought some bananas here and got Hannah a drink below.  We did stop at another place in a very small community and had to pay 1000 kwacha(a little more than a quarter) to use the toilet.  It was just a hole in the ground but at least it had walls.  At this place we also bought a little bag of popcorn and a couple of small bags of chips. 

On our way home we had to drive through a game park for about 2 hours.  We were hoping to see something big like an elephant or lion but instead we just saw Kudu(which is above), impala, and warthogs.  When this big Kudu walked in front of us we had to stop and take a picture of that.  Kevin really wants to kill one of those one day.

 Here are 3 out of the 6 Kudu we saw walking through the bush. 

Blueberries!

Recently when we were visiting our friends in the Northern Province of Zambia our host made us some blueberry muffins.  I couldn't believe she had blueberries so I asked her where she had gotten them.  She had gotten them in the freezer section at Shop Rite in Lusaka!  Funny, someone who lives a two days drive from Lusaka had to tell me about where to find blueberries!  I don't usually buy things in that section because in the past when I did you could tell that the things had thawed and had been refrozen again and tasted funny so I usually steer clear of that area.  So anyway, I bought some frozen blueberries and made these wonderful blueberry muffins last night so I thought I would share the recipe here.  At the bottom I put a recipe for lemon blueberry pancakes.  I have not tried that one yet but in the next couple of days you can be assured we will be trying that one too.  Happy cooking!

To Die For Blueberry Muffins

"Big blueberry flavor warrants big muffins, so fill the cups right up for oversized muffins that will please everyone. The cinnamon-sugar streusel is the crowning glory."

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup white sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/3 cup vegetable oil 1 egg

1/3 cup milk 1 cup fresh blueberries 1/2 cup white sugar 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup butter, cubed 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
2.	Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.
3.	To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking.
4.	Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done. Lemon Blueberry Pancakes Ingredients 1-1/2 cup Cake Flour 1 Tablespoon (additional) Cake Flour 1/4 teaspoon Salt 1 Tablespoon (heaping) Baking Powder 3 Tablespoons Sugar 1-1/2 cup Evaporated Milk (more If Needed) 1 whole Lemon (more If Needed) 1 whole Large Egg 1-1/2 teaspoon Vanilla 2 Tablespoons Butter, Melted Zest From 1 Lemon 1 cup Heaping Blueberries Extra Butter Maple Or Pancake Syrup Preparation Instructions Heat heavy skillet or grill over medium low heat. In a medium bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar. Set aside. In a separate bowl, mix evaporated milk, juice of 1 lemon (more if lemon isn't very juicy), and lemon zest. Allow to sit for five minutes, then add egg, vanilla, and melted butter. Mix to combine. Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients. Stir gently to combine. Splash in more evaporated milk if mixture is overly thick. Stir in blueberries. Again, check to make sure mixture isn't overly thick. Melt butter in heated skillet. Drop batter by 1/4 cup measures and fry pancakes on both sides until golden. Serve with softened butter and warm syrup.

Who will it be?

This is the week of the national elections in Zambia. Voters will be electing a president, members of parliament and local government officials next Tuesday, Sept. 20th.  Please, Pray that the people of Zambia will seek the Lord’s will as they cast their votes.  Pray for the candidates as they campaign in different parts of the country.  Pray for the election officials. Pray for peace in the days surrounding the elections. Lastly, Pray for God’s blessing on the people of Zambia.

Love, Laughter, and Happily Ever After

 Kevin and I met the first day of our freshman year at UNC-Wilmington at a party. I was dating someone else at the time so we just became friends.  Knowing that I was in a long distance relationship, Kevin decided to stick close because he figured it wouldn't work out.  After a few months his theory came true.  In Feb. of our freshman year we started dating. I was a carnal Christian and Kevin was not even a Christan at that time.  I became friends with a girl named Kim Freeman(below) who most definitely was a Christian.  I could tell that her life and my life were not too similar.  She invited me to a Campus Crusade for Christ meeting and I went.  Everyone was different and seemed to have something that I didn't.  I ended up going to Daytona Beach Florida for spring break with CCC.  While I was there I realized why I was different from most of my friends.  They all were walking with the Lord and had a strong relationship with Him.  I had prayed to receive Christ when I was 16 but I was trying to be in control of my life at this point and not allowing God to be in control.  It's like I was putting God in a box and just getting Him out when I needed something.  I rededicated my life to the Lord at this time.  When I got back to school I broke up with Kevin since he was not a christian and I knew that I wanted to follow Christ.  He could tell I had changed and wanted to know what had happened.  I shared the four spiritual laws with him(tract) and a few days later he prayed to receive Christ.  We stayed broke up for a couple of months and then got back together after I felt sure he was not just doing it to get me back.  We dated throughout our four years of college and then got married Sept. 10th 1988. 
Growing up I was like most girls dreaming of my prince charming sweeping me off my feet and us living happily ever after.  Never would I have imagined 23 years ago what my happily ever after would look like-in the ministry, Kevin pastoring, having 3 wonderful children, and then being a missionary in Africa!.  That is just like God though!  I'm glad that I didn't know 23 years ago what my life would look like.  Perhaps that would have been too boring.  Instead, I have been on an incredible adventure with the man I love!  I'm thankful to God for bringing us together and keeping us together throughout all these years.  Of course, our life has not been without difficulties, no life is, I'm just thankful for a loving, faithful God who helps us when we need it most.

Below are some pictures of our wedding day.  Hope you enjoy!

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 My bridesmaids-Kelly, Angie S., me, Angie-my sister, Kim, and Eileen

 Kevin's ushers and our dads-Grady, Todd P., my dad, me and Kevin, Kevin's dad, Todd B., and Ray.

We are so thankful for great friends and family that came out to support us on this special day.

 As we were waiting to go in my sister realized she did not have Kevin's wedding ring.  There was a moment of panic but then we found it on the train of my dress.  The music started and then we started the processional.  I love this picture of me and my daddy!

They kissed and lived happily ever after.....

Luapula Province-on the way home

On our way home from Kaputa we drove through Luapula Province.  The first day we drove 12 hours until we got to a lodge to stay in for the night.  The first 4 1/2 hours were on a dirt road and there were people everywhere.  We passed village after village on this road.  We were amazed at how many Jehovah Witness churches there were.  I'm not lying, I bet we saw one every 5-10 kms.and no evangelical churches in sight until we got to Nchelenge and then there were just a handful.  Please pray for this province to come to know Jesus!  It is a very dark area of Zambia and someone needs to go and be a witness among these people.
The second day we traveled 4 hours back to Lusaka.  It was a great trip but it sure is nice to be home!

Here is some info. on this province:
Luapula Province is one of Zambia's nine provinces, and is located in the north of the country. The provincial capital is Mansa. Luapula Province was named after the Luapula River. It extends along the northern and eastern banks of the river from Lake Bangweulu to Lake Mweru, including waters and islands of those lakes, and is inhabited by Bemba-speaking peoples. The major economic activity is fishing.
In the 19th century the valley was dominated by the Lunda kingdom.The province is bordered along the Luapula River, through Lake Mweru and to its north by DR Congo which at times has led to disputes and conflict.

 Kevin and I said we would love to have a home right here where we stood to take this pic.  This was on the left side of the road and to the right was huge lake Mweru.  It was very picturesque. I just think this is a beautiful view!  

 After many hours we came to an area where there was a very long bridge and miles and miles of flood plain. We crossed over the huge bridge and saw some interesting things on the other side of it.

 These raised up areas are where there is a giant ant hill underneath the grass.

 These are termite hills!  We have seen many termite hills throughout Zambia but never like this.  Usually, the ones we see are spread out and bigger than these.  As far as we could see on both sides of the road there were termite hills, like tiny rows of daggers or dragon's teeth.  I took a close up below so you could see better what they look like.

 This was taken just on the side of the road.

 We stopped to buy two bags of charcoal because it is much cheaper out in the bush than in town.

I love this pic. of these kids.  As we were waiting for Kevin to get the charcoal these children asked me, "How are you?" at least 15 times.

This is the Luapula province which we traveled through to get from Kaputa to Lusaka.

This is the Northern Province where Kaputa and Mbala are.  Right now we just have those two missionary families that we just visited and one other family in Isoka which is also in the Northern province.  3 families for this whole province!  

Northern Province, with a total area of 147,286 square kilometers, is the largest of Zambia's 9 provinces. It shares borders not only with three other provinces - Central, Eastern, and Luapula, but also with three countries as well - the Democratic Republic of Congo in the north, Tanzania in the north-east, and Malawi in the east.According to the 2000 Census of population, Northern Province has a population of 1,407,088. This represents an increase of 481,233 from 925,865 in 1990. The annual population growth rate is 4.3%, which is the highest of all the 9 provinces. 50.5% of the total population is female and 49.5% is male. Children below the age of 15 make up 49.5% of the population in the province.

Pray for God to do an amazing work in this province through our 3 missionary families-The Adairs, the Schwarz, and the Kimbroughs.