Fun Weekend

It was such a blessing to us to be able to go to RVA this weekend and see Hannah perform in a play called, The Mouse that Roared.  She did very well!

 Here are a few pics from the play.

 taking a bow

 back in the dorm

We got to stay in the dorm with the girls Saturday night so their dorm parents could get away for a night.  It was a lot of fun!  

 Taylor with roses from her family.

 Hannah and her roommate, Amy.

 Hannah and Avi

 Hannah and the flowers we gave her.

 snacks in the dorm after the play.

 It was fun playing Just Dance.

 Hannah with friends

Hannah and Delaney playing Just Dance

 Me and my sweet girl

We enjoyed getting to visit with Anna Grace too!  

Giving

 These are some interesting facts I recently found on giving. 

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” – Matthew 6:21

What else does scripture say about giving, money, possessions, greed, generosity, treasures, pearls, talents, pounds, stables, mammon, etc.

• The word "Give" appears 921 times in the Bible, almost as many times as "Faith" (270), "Hope" (165), and "Love" (541) added together. Giving is an expression of faith, hope, and love.
• Mentioned more than any other subject in the Bible
• 2 times more than Heaven and Hell combined
• 3 times more than love
• 7 times more than prayer
• 8 times more than belief
• 17 of 38 parables
• 15% of God’s Word
• 2,350 verses                                                                                                                            

AGM in Zambia

 Last week we were able to go back to Zambia for the Annual General Meeting for the Baptist Fellowship.  Kevin had been asked to speak several months ago and then we were also able to say bye to many people at one time from all over Zambia.

The picture above is of those who led us in our time of worship. 

  Kevin preached 5 times during the meeting.  Pastors and people representing the different churches came from all over Zambia.  It was so good to see so many people whom we only see normally once or twice a year.

 during a time of commitment

 

 

 John is retiring in December. The fellowship recognized him and gave him a gift.

 John sharing his last words.

 The Baptist Fellowship gave us a gift and had several people share some very kind words to us.  It was hard to say bye. 

 

 I stood and thanked them for the gift and for their support over the years.

 

 Kevin holding the gift and watching as I spoke.  I had to not look at him because it made me want to cry.

 Kevin preaching

 One day for lunch Grace made us a traditional Korean meal.  It was delicious!

It was a good few days back in Zambia.  Not sure when we will be able to go again but we will be looking forward to that time no matter when it is.  

 

A fun outing

 A couple of weeks ago we we on a fun outing with friends for the day.  It was a place outside of Nairobi and they make things out of glass that they have blown.  

 It was really neat to watch and see how they made things.

We watched them make pitchers and vases on this particular day.

 It was so hot just standing somewhat near these men as they worked.  I can't imagine how hot they must feel all day working in those conditions.

 me and my friend Shawna

 It was fun to have a day out with our friends Daren and Shawna.  Both of our families came to Zambia back in 1997.

We actually paid money to walk across this rickety bridge!

 

 I still can't believe I did this!

Kevin being funny.

As the wheels touch down

As we began to land I could see Nairobi from the air it was a bit overwhelming.  Nairobi is a huge city and much larger than Lusaka.  As the wheels touched down, I began wondering how in the world will I ever learn this place and these people?  After being here for almost two weeks I'm seeing that the answer to that questions is little by little.  It is just going to take time.

We were met at the airport by two of  our good friends who came to the field a little bit before us and have now moved to Nairobi too.  They helped us with getting our dogs from the cargo area.  Then we drove through crazy traffic.  We stopped quickly to eat at Dominoes and then they took us to our new home.  We landed at 4 and we reached home around 8:00pm.  The truck with our dogs came just a few min. after we arrived.  That was pretty good timing!  Our friends left and then we walked around this new place called home.  We were pretty tired so we went to bed pretty soon after getting here. It doesn't quite feel like home yet but I'm sure in time it will. 

In the next couple of days we unpacked our 7 suitcases.  Kevin fixed several things that were not working.  We went to the grocery store.  We got our internet set up.  We had friends who brought us dinner for two nights which was a big help. We did quite a bit!  As I look back it seems like we were just constantly moving trying to get things done.  Then on Friday we left to go to our cluster meeting with the missionaries serving in East Africa.  We were at this meeting 6 days. We felt very welcomed by everyone. We enjoyed the fellowship, preaching, and especially hearing the team reports.  We had a fun day and picnic where we competed against other teams.  My (Suzie) team won!  We got a free drink at the coffee shop.  We came back on the following Thursday and Hannah came home on Friday for her mid-term break.  We have enjoyed having her here with us for a few days.  

Anyway, I just wanted to update you on what we have been doing.  Please continue to pray for us as we settle in to our new home and country.  Pray we will get our work permits soon so we can start the process of getting our things from Zambia. 

 Our new home

I was excited to see the bushes in the front of the house. They are called "yesterday, today, and tomorrow."  They are so pretty with the purple and white flowers and they smell heavenly!  We had them at our front porch when we lived in Chongwe too.  It made me smile when I saw them and I just know that God was trying to thrill me!

 Misty

 

 Hannah and Sadie

The dogs are so excited to have Hannah home over her mid-term break from school. 

Taxi and Take Off

As we sit on the airplane and the stewardess is talking about safety regulations my mind begins to drift.  I think about how hard the last couple of months have been as we have had to say “bye” to so many of our friends and to a place we have called home for the last 19 years.  We begin to taxi out to the runway and my mind is flooded with so many memories.  How can we leave a place we love so very much?  The tears come as we take off and I watch Zambia disappear below the clouds.   God has us on a new adventure in East Africa that we will begin today. As we go, we take with us a full heart and a lifetime of memories. We are who we are today because of the impact these people and this place has had on our lives. We raised our children in Zambia and it is where they call “home.”  We had many years of ministry in Zambia serving alongside of other missionaries and national believers and friends.  It’s not easy to leave a place you love so very much. But I know that we go in obedience to our Lord whom we love so very much.  He has used our time in Zambia to prepare us for this next step.  We just need to continue to walk by faith day by day and trust God in all of this.   As I took pictures over the last couple of months of some of our good-byes with friends I thought I would put them together here for you to see.  Of course, to you these are just pictures but to us they represent friendships and lots of memories.  I wish I had pics of everyone but unfortunately I don’t so I'll share the ones I have.  

28 Years Together

 28 years ago today Kevin and I were married!  When I see the picture below it makes me smile.  We were so young with our whole future ahead of us.  We had big dreams....but God had even bigger ones.  More than we could have even imagined back then.  God is so good!  We have lived life together for the last 28 years.  We have traveled many places, raised our family, and had a great ministry.  God has truly blessed us! I'm looking forward to the years ahead!  

Evening of Day 2 in Mfuwe

 While we were waiting to go on our night safari I sat out under our porch area and watched 17 giraffe out in front of where we were staying.  I love Giraffe so this was so exciting to me!

 They are so graceful! 

 They are beautiful to watch!

 

 There were a lot of mongoose where we stayed.  The woman who owned the place fed them.  They were amazing to watch!

 

 They all came running and then the owner threw out some food for them.

 I loved watching the giraffe!  I could sit there all day!

 

 

 That evening we went on night safari.  We did not see a whole lot but it was still fun.

The end of another good day!