Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Papa Jim says that if all goes well he should have his project finished today.  He's been working on it for several days.  Adding more lighting to the kitchen.  Our kitchen has a dark spot.  Right over the sink and the work station.  

He's like that.  The longer he lives in a place, the more he fixes it up.  And he's always coming up with clever ideas to make things better.  

I remember years ago when we were in Jungle Came in southern Mexico.  For the final phase we all went out to this beautiful area and camped outside for ten days.  We were supposed to put into practice all the things we had been learning.  How to survive in primitive situations.  Strung up our own hammocks.  Made a davenport with ropes woven between two trees.  Our particular site was right near the bluff, and it was breathtaking.  And way down below was the river.  We hauled water from the river, boiled it, and used it for everything.  I hauled our dirty cloths down to the river and washed our laundry while the boys paddled around in the shallow rivers edge.  One day Jim came up with this wonderful plan.  Since we were right on the bluff, and since there was this lovely big tree hanging over the steep descent, why not tie a bucket to the tree?  So that is what he did.  With a very long rope.  The first morning he tried it out, he stood beside the tree with his long coil of rope.  Then with a great heave he tossed our water bucket out over the gorge.  Soon we heard the distant splash as the bucket hit the water.  Then he began hauling our bucket back up, hand over hand.  Suddenly the jungle quiet rang out with a loud "JIM TUCKER, I WON'T LET YOU DO THAT!   THAT'S NOT FAIR!"  This sad plea came from a future Bible translator who still had a long hike up the mountain when he made it to our site.  Hauling water for him was a real chore.  But that's the way Jim is.  Little by little he improves things.  Don't know what would happen if he ever got things totally fixed up.  We've always moved before then.

Monday, February 27, 2017

You should have come to breakfast today.  Good food.  Good fellowship.  What more could you ask.

We ate Papa Jim's famous eggs.  Smothered in homemade yogurt.  Homemade English muffins.  With jelly.  Not homemade.  Coffee or Tea.  A meal fit for a king.

But it was the fellowship that was outstanding.  Can't remember who started it.  Got off into a conversation about marriage, finding the right partner, important stuff like that.  The stories flowed.  It was fascinating to hear.  We were a Pastor turned director of his own mission to Muslims, a university student who is getting papers to go to Canada to further his studies, a taxi driver, Papa Jim, and Mama Alice.

We established some absolutes.  A Christian must marry a believer.  Gave lots of examples to back that up.  Quoted scripture.  Need the support, counsel, and prayers of your church leadership and other strong Christians who know you well.   And you have to have confirmation direct from God Himself.  Confirmation that is backed up by others.  We concluded that whoever finds a good wife finds a good thing.

So you missed today, but it's not too late to drop in tomorrow.  Can't predict what the topic of conversation will be.  Know it will be stimulating, challenging, edifying.  You won't want to miss out.  See you then.

Sunday, February 26, 2017

Life.  It's exciting.  Never dull.  Seldom the same twice.  Filled with variety.  Couldn't be boring.  And it flies past at the speed of light.  Yesterday you were 13 with all the confusing possibilities before you.  And now today you are 70 and wonder where it all went.  Wouldn't change a moment.  But wouldn't want to re-live even a moment.  Glad to be here.  At this juncture.  Wife.  Mom.  Grandma.  Friend.  Missionary.  Don't know how tomorrow will unfold.  But eager to find out.  And at the end of it all, when the last day has been lived, the last breath inhaled, and you walk through that door labeled death, that's when real life begins.

Life.  The fullness of life.  Can hardly wait.  It lasts for eternity.  Unending joy.  Unending wonder and awe.  Never dull.  No possibility of being bored.  And the King in all His splendor and glory will be there.  To be with Him.  To be like Him.  To worship and adore Him.  For ever and ever and ever.  Looking forward to that life.  Can hardly wait.

Saturday, February 25, 2017

He used to have a good job.  Driving truck.  Lived in a nice place.  Living the good life.  Then he got sick.  Eventually lost his job.  Lost his house.  Reduced to nothing.  Nothing but sickness.  Very ill.  Somewhere along the way the family turned against him.  Didn't want anything to do with him.  When he hit absolute bottom, there was only one person who would help.  One he could turn to in his hour of need.  His niece Doris.  She had shared the gospel with him many times.  But he never had ears to hear.  Too busy living the good life.  She went to see him in the hospital.  We sent money to help out with his exams.  Test results revealed an advanced case of AIDS.  Doris arranged for someone to bring him food each day.  Brought her pastor to visit.  Shared the gospel.  That first night a young girl in the next bed, who was very ill, said she needed what Doris was offering.  She gave her life to Christ.  And two days later she entered into the fullness of life.  Then the Uncle gave his life to the Lord.  His health is slowly coming back.  Today he goes home from the hospital.  They found his a small studio near the church.  We paid for six months rent.  And we gave him the funds to start a small business.  Hopefully he will be able to make it on his own.  The family has become more upset with him than ever.  They are doing all to convince him to give up his relationship with God.  But he would rather suffer persecution than abandon the One Who gave His all for him.  The Life Changer has captured his heart and life.

Friday, February 24, 2017

Doris and I went to the eye doctors.  She is having trouble adjusting to her new glasses.  And me?  I'm getting old.  My eyes are not the same.

Ebogo met us there.  It was upstairs in a nice, modern building.  The eye doctor was great.  Very professional.  She gave me a thorough exam. Said my astigmatism is greatly improved.  And both my distance and near vision have improved.  No wonder seeing the computer gets harder and harder.

Ebogo helped me pick out some modern frames.  I go back to get my new glasses in two weeks.  I'm looking forward to that.

Doris just has to be patient and let her eyes adjust to her new glasses.  It's her first pair.

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

He's back. Our young university friend from Bamenda.  He's here working on more paperwork for going to Canada to continue his studies.  The civil unrest in the English speaking areas has effectively shut down his educational opportunities.  Fortunately he has friends in Canada who are sponsoring him.

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

This day actually began last week when Guy checked with our local clinic and learned they no longer give immunizations.  We used to just walk out with our yellow shot records and get whatever we needed.  Well, times change as they say.

So today we took a 15 min. taxi ride to the Baptist clinic.  Paid our consultation fee.  Waited the better part of forever in this little crowded area.  Lots of fussy babies.  Finally it was our turn.  Doctor said he didn't think they had what we needed.  Sent us to pediatrics.  Nurse there said they could give us only one of the three we needed.  But we would have to buy a case of ten injections and only use the two we needed.  Since we had to find another place anyway, decided to wait and hope they could sell us exactly what we need.

Now we are waiting for another free moment so we can try day three of our immunization adventure.  Have we mentioned before that life is never easy here in Cameroon?

 

Monday, February 20, 2017

Internet back up and running.  Hello outside world!

Saturday evening attended a Valentines Banquet out at RFIS (Rain Forest International School).  Good attendance.  Yummy food.  Good fellowship with friends new and old.  Great evening.  They took a survey and discovered that we had been married the longest of anyone.  And there was a young couple that had been married just 18 months.  So we both were asked to share how we met and how we got engaged.  It was fun.  They kept exclaiming over 47 years of marriage.  Seemed like a couple of life times for the young people.

Speaking of long marriages, our sons both reached milestones.  Earlier this month Dan and Julia celebrated 22 years of marriage.  A handful of days later David and Megan reached 20 years.  How times flies.

Thursday, February 16, 2017

We sent him to the doctors two days ago.  Deathly ill.  Barely able to hold his head up.  Sent his sister along to help him.  Hired the taxi since he simply could not make it without lying down.

Came back with a report today.  Looking much better.  Ran all sorts of tests.  Discovered malaria.  The obvious one.  Also typhoid.  Nasty stuff that.  And to top it off, amoebas.  No wonder he was so dreadfully ill.  There are many ways to die out here.  He's just dealing with three of them.  All at the same time.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

They showed up this afternoon.  Two ladies.  Came to make reservations for a group coming next month.  One (the leader) looked like she was the president of the hookers club.  Dressed in a long, black, flowing robe.  Long hair.  Thick eye shadow.  Painted on eyebrows.  Fake eyelashes.  Layers of purple lipstick.  Long nails.  Claws really.  She talked about how they wanted to help ladies go deeper into God.  Her words and her  appearance didn't match, but who am I to judge.

They spent a considerable amount of time trying to convince me to give them a major discount on the price.  I kept saying "NO" but they never gave up.  Finally I got tired of the conversation and told them we weren't going to talk about it anymore.  It was futile.  Our price is our price.  If they didn't like it, they were free to go somewhere else.  We would not be upset with them.  But no more discussion.  Besides, all this endless chatter was not glorifying to God.  So they gave up, said they would have to talk with their pastor, and left.

Whew!  Glad to see them go.  Told Francis and Doris all about them and then went back to work.  Not five minutes later Francis came to tell me that my "best friends" were back!  Sure enough...there they were.  They had phoned their pastor and were told to go ahead and made the reservation.  They even gave a deposit to secure the reservation.  No more arguing, badgering, or begging.  

Actually, this is a very common occurrence.  Bartering is a way of life out here, and it translates into Shiloh, too.  But you cannot go to the Hilton and beat the price down.  It does not work that way.  We are like the Hilton.  Well, except for the fact that they are bigger and fancier than us.  Otherwise we are just the same.

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

The phone call came shortly before 6 p.m.  He was very sick.  I told him to come to Shiloh and we would give him money to go to the doctors.  When he arrived he was dreadfully ill.  Papa Jim gave hm some aspirin and some water.  Joseph went out and found a taxi.  He needed to lay down in the car.  I phoned his sister and asked her to come help him.  Soon he was on his way to get the help he needs.  We assume it is malaria.  He will probably spend the night in the hospital with an I.V.

They always do this.  It's universally the same.  No matter who, no matter what.  They never come to us until they are deathly ill.  We keep right on lecturing them about not waiting so long for help.  But nothing changes.  They don't want to bother us.  Such is life.

Monday, February 13, 2017

He arrived shortly after 8 this morning with a story to tell.  Took the bus all the way from Nigeria.  Two day trip.  Day one ended a few miles outside of Bamenda.  Got stopped for seven hours.  Stuck inside a bus that is not moving for seven hours would not be anyone's idea of a great trip.  Due to civil unrest going on in Bamenda Town, they had to wait.  Many others were lined up waiting.  Eventually they were allowed to continue on and finally he arrived in Yaounde.

They arrived last night after 10 p.m.  Got the word that their train would not be a good option for the continuation of their trip tonight.  It all started back in October when part of the highway washed out on the way to Daoula.  As a result the train added a number of  cars and many more passengers.  Sure enough, the cars jumped the track and a bad accident resulted.  Lives were lost.  But now, in February, the authorities thought it would be a good idea to take the train off line and do a complete check to make sure there was no damage.  They put the old train back in service, but there are no sleeper cars, no first class cars.  It's little more than box cars.  Not a good option for travel.

After many phone calls and juggling of plans, it was decided they would hire a driver to take them to the mission hospital they had come to work at.  So everybody gets one more night of sleep at Shiloh and then they will head out.  Hopefully it will be better than the bus trip, and surely better than that train ride nobody wants to take.

Flexibility.  It's the name of the game out here.

Sunday, February 12, 2017

Went to church today.  It had been two and a half months.  Felt good to be back in the house of God.  Good singing.  Good preaching.  Good friends.  Found Papa Alphonse sitting alone in the back row as I filed out.  Stopped to visit with him.  Had to pick up his hand so he would know I was there.  He's blind.  And godly.  We've helped him out from time to time.  Saw Marie.  Gave me a big hug.  Shook lots of hands.  Walked back home with a warm heart.  Wish I could get to church more often.

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Wrapped up a lot of loose ends today.  Sorted through a case of donated books.  Found some good ones.  And ones to give away.  Tackled (and conquered) a pile of paperwork.  Good to get that out of the way.  And of course cleaned every room in the house.  The new people start coming in tomorrow.  By Monday we will have a full house again.  Also made a batch of granola and some lasagna to put in the freezer.  Getting ready to feed a small group next week.  Loose end days are good days.  It's nice to get caught up on things.  Gives you a good feeling.

Friday, February 10, 2017

He said he wanted to come and see me.  Wanted to spend time with the great family.  That's us.  We're the family of Doris.  And he's the guy who wants to marry her.  But first he has to wait until his brother-in-law gives the go-ahead signal.  It's not really a brother-in-law.  Maybe a half-brother-in-law.  Married his half-sister.  Or maybe he's just the husband of his half-sister.

Whatever we call him, he was dead set against Doris.  Her fault?  She didn't go to his church.  He's a pastor and his relative can only marry one of the girls in his church.  It's his law.  Crazy, but that's the way it is.  So he put a stop to the romance.  Give it up.  Come to church and find a wife there.  

Our counsel and advice was to put the breaks on things, but to spend lots of time in prayer.  And get to know each other better.  Let the relationship develop gradually.  And when the time is right, the half-in-law will come around.  They got hold of some books on preparing for marriage.  Been devouring them. Learning all sorts of things.  Feel so much better prepared than they would have been.  And the relationship is deepening.  

We're all praying and praying and praying.  We know that God can do all things. Guess what?  The half-in-law is opening up to the idea.  Been asking if our girl is really a Christian.  What do you know about her?  Is she serious in her walk with God?  And are you convinced beyond all doubt that she is the one God has for you?

Prayer changes things.  God's timing is perfect.  We watch and wait and pray.  And we trust Him to do all things well.

Thursday, February 9, 2017

Went to visit my widow friend today.  It's been five months since her pastor husband died.  She's doing much better.  Her little store is selling things.  It brings a small but steady income in.  She's back to sewing again.  She stopped for several months.  But she is back at it again.  And she is also selling purses from China and lovely Cameroonian fabric.  So I bought two lengths of fabric.  Lovely colors.  And a whole bag of tomato paste packets.  Also little packets of laundry soap.  These make good gifts for people.  We help out a number of people who struggle to find food to eat.

I was glad to see my friend doing so well.  This is the first time she did not talk about how hard it is.  The first time she did not talk about missing her husband so much.  She's going to make it.  I'm trying to encourage her to start a group for widows.  She's had an initial meeting with one widowed pastors wife.  And they have discussed helping other widows.  She needs to look outwards.  That is where healing and strength lie.  Their church is getting a new pastor.  Her husband's official replacement.  It is a man that her pastor trained and encouraged to attend Bible school.  She says their "son" is coming home.  I'm happy for her.

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

My cooking club met at Shiloh today.  It was my turn to teach them something.  Since I'm no cook, I choose a fruit salad.  Thought everyone knew how.  But turned out they learned a few new tricks.

Started with a watermelon. Cut a small slice off the bottom so it would not roll.  Then cut saw teeth points all the way around and removed the top half.  Using the fruit baler, we made a mound of watermelon balls.  This time around we used papaya, apples, bananas, grapes, and pineapple.  To this we added raisins that had been soaked in filtered water, ground peanuts, cinnamon, and sugar.  When this was well tossed, it went into the watermelon rind bowl and was set on a platter.  Then I put some whipped cream (with sugar and vanilla in it) in a bowl.

Then came the fun part.  We talked about setting tables and making things fancy.  I showed them how a square of material can hang over the edge of the table and become a place mat.  We fell into this idea once when our table cloth was dirty and there was no time to wash it.  You can cover a multitude of sins that way!  I opened up all the hutches and let them pick their table settings.  We have multiple sets of silverware to choose from, too.  And we did a small napkin folding demonstration as well.  

Everyone went home with napkins to dress up their tables with.  It was a successful event.

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Shiloh is crawling with people at this time.  Every bed has two people in it.  And there is an extra person on the floor in the library.  Turning people away regularly.  Could use a larger place.  Often.  But we keep busy enough as it is, so best to stay as we are.  Cleaning bathrooms every morning.  Fortunately they are gone all day.  Taking meals out and having their meeting somewhere else.  So things are hopping, but we have it under control.

Monday, February 6, 2017

They're calling it the 15 year drought.  But it ended yesterday, and it is big.  The Mighty Lyons met the Pharaohs of Egypt on a playing field in Gabon and history  was made.  The Pharaohs had the first goal.  But everything after that belonged to the Lyons.  When the final whistle was blown, the score was two to one.  Fifteen years after their last win the indomitable Lyons won the African Cup of Nations.  And the entire country exploded with joy!  You didn't need a television.  You didn't need a radio.  You knew.  Everybody knew.  The shouting, whistle blowing, and horns honking reached to every corner of every city, town, and village.  There is no event more important than this in Cameroon.  Nothing outranks it.  Today the city was alive with excitement.  Everyone was abuzz with the news.  Flags were being waved.  Young men sported the team's shirt.  A full half hour before the team was slated to leave Gabon and return home, even before they had the final boarding, the main thoroughfare in downtown Yaounde was packed with people, waiting to welcome them back home.  And the celebration will enter a second night.  Today we are one.  No matter which tribe you come from, if you are English speaking or French, where you stand politically, today we are simply Cameroonians.  Proud Cameroonians.  It's the countries fifth win.  Only Egypt tops that with their seven wins.  To beat them was quite a feat.  Long live the Mighty Lyons.  Long live Cameroon.

Saturday, February 4, 2017

Let's say that you discover that you are running low on cash.  You hop in the car, head for the nearest ATM, put your card in the machine, and take out what you need. Maybe you decide to run a few errands while you are out.  Simple.  Straightforward.  Nothing to it.  In no time at all you are back home and moving on with life.

So let's run through that situation on the other side of the big pond.  You discover you are low on cash so you call the taxi.  An hour later he shows up and you take off across town to your bank.  You and a million other people.  Traffic is very heavy.  But you finally get there only to discover that the bank is closed for the day.  CLOSED FOR THE DAY!  What is this? Unfortunately you don't travel with your Visa card so you travel all the way back across town to your place, run inside quickly and get your Visa card.  Off you go to the closest ATM.  But it is closed down today.  No problem.  You move on to the next one.  Same problem.  Then you try another.  It lets you put your card in and go through the motions, only to tell you it is broken down.  Moving right along, you finally find a bank that has a functioning ATM machine.  With money in it.  What a novel concept.  So you take out the money you need.  Three hours after you left home you arrive back, completely worn out and wondering if it was worth it.  Life is seldom easy out here.

Friday, February 3, 2017

They got acquainted in his taxi.  He drove them all over Yaounde.  To meetings.  To the store.  To the doctors.  And all over Cameroon.  Down to Daoula.  To Kribi.  Up to Bamenda.  After hours and hours together, they became good friends.  

Now that they have gone back home, they have not forgotten their taxi driver friend out in Cameroon.  They were thrilled to learn that he and his wife are expecting their first, after years of marriage.  And they wanted to have a part.  So they sent some money out through us.  We had the fun of giving it on to it's rightful destination.

Wish you could have heard all the blessings he prayed down upon their heads.  Long life.  Health.  Children and grandchildren blessed, too.  He sent his greetings to them and to everyone whom they know.  Surely they must all be lovely people, too.

What will he do with this money designated for the baby?  That's easy.  His very organized wife has the list.  But he knows the next two items on the list are a foot locker type metal box and a baby bed.  And the gift will pay for both.  God is good.  They are rejoicing in this amazing, unexpected blessing.

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

They brought their friends, they brought the food.  Great guests!  We need more like them!  We had a grand time visiting and the food was oh so yummy.  Tastes better when I'm not the cook.  They wanted their friends to meet us.  Just out here for three and a half weeks.  Doing all sorts of stuff.  Speaking to a group of high school MKs at their annual retreat.  Talked to a group of parents about college for their older kids.  Shared with a church on how to do income generating businesses.  Spent one day at an orphanage.  This has been a rich and full visit.  Going back home with lots of new ideas and information.  And a big heart to pray for the ministry out here.  Glad we got to spend the evening with them.  All we did was set the table and wash the dishes afterwards.  And enjoy the visit.