Last Days in LA

Donald, Katie and Hannah went on this roller coaster and Katie and Hannah went on the ferris wheel. On the ferris wheel they chose to go on the swinging pod!! Yes that is right this ferris wheel has pods that swing and they swing a lot.
Donald and Katie with the Kaya Family when we went to Venutra Beach.

Well here we are just about at the end of our trip away from home. I must say that it will be nice to be home - to see our kids, to see our friends and to be home and not have to live out of a suitcase anymore.

We have had some amazing experiences, lots of fun and lots of meeting new people. It has also been really good catching up with old friends.

Today is Sunday and we went to Grace Community Church. It was great being there and we got to go to Cornerstone Sunday School Class, which is the college group that Rick Holland is pastoring. He told them all some of the stories from our Kiwi Ranch days and told everyone we were crazy!!!

I actually haven't been back to LA since Donald graduated in 1995 so for me it has been really fun to be back. For Katie it is her first time here so she has enjoyed lots and lots of 'firsts'. Today after church we went and showed Katie the house we used to live in. I didn't realise how steep the road was!!!

Tonight we are going to Placerita Baptist church. That is where Scott Ardivanis is a pastor so we are meeting with him after the service and with Patty and also Patty's brother Steve. We knew Steve from Kiwi Ranch Days as well. It will be a lot of fun. Donald will be giving a report on Samfya.

Yesterday we met with Grandpa Gerry, who just happens to be Patty's and Steve's Dad. He supported us when Donald was in Seminary by taking us to Price Club and also by paying some of Donald's Seminary Fees.

We have also been able to spend time with some of the Sheahan family which has been wonderful as well. The Sheahan family took us in when we first went to the Masters Seminary. We stayed with them for a month and they helped us to find our home and showed us where to do grocery shopping etc. We are very grateful to them for everything they did and taught us. We love them loads!

Tomorrow we are going to try to catch up with Marcia. She actually came to NZ to Impact not the last time that Martha Peace but the time before. I knew her when we lived here and sat in her counseling class to learn some of the counseling techniques. Then we will have to make sure we are all packed and ready to go. Our planes leaves here at 9:30pm Monday and we will be arriving at 12.30pm Wednesday in Napier. We actually fly into Auckland and we are going to be able to spend some time with Donald's mum at the Airport.

Well this will be my last report here. We will see you on Wednesday!
Thank you all so much for this lifetime opportunity.

Gwen

UK to LA

Greetings from Simi Valley in Los Angeles. I am long overdue an update - sorry for the delay!

Our time in the UK was a real blessing for us. In many ways it was unwinding from the previous 3 ½ months of the work in Zambia, time to take a breath and as a family enjoy seeing some amazing history as we travelled to various churches and stopped with ministry contacts and friends. The meetings were valuable in making further contacts in relation to partnership in Zambia and we look forward to seeing how God uses this visit in the future.

As we travelled through the UK, we have had impressed on our hearts how unique our church fellowship is in New Zealand. We are blessed beyond our imagination, and while we are by no means the perfect church, we have an amazing fellowship at RBC. God has richly blessed us as a fellowship and we must rejoice in the blessings that He has given and continue to share with others from the abundance that we have. We must be an outwardly focused church sharing the love of Christ through all the blessing we have in people, ministries, finances, teaching... Praise God for his blessings to us!

The meetings we had the day before we left UK with Echoes of Service in Bath was certainly a high light and was alone worth the time spent in the UK. The men we met were very gracious and supportive and we were able to be encouraged together in the cause of mission. The trust that these men work with has given gifts to Samfya each year for many years and they will be very interested to see the long term plans for infrastructure development at Samfya with the potential of helping the school as well as having contacts with a wide number of churches who could be made aware of the work as well. Praise the Lord for this valuable meeting!

We are now staying with our friends the Kaya family in Simi Valley. It is a blessing to catch up with them - they are people that we interacted with when we were here at Seminary, a wonderful relationship in Christ and discipling. They have four children and are also caring for a nephew, so the house is very full but loads of fun.

Yesterday we fellowshipped with Christ Community Church in West Covina (where Greg, Traci & Micah come from). I can’t tell you how much of a blessing this time was and how welcoming this church was to us. Donald was able to share in the preliminary parts of both morning services and then give a detailed report to the youth ministry in one session and then to two adult classes in the second session. Then in the evening Donald also taught one further adult class. The people of the church were very supportive about Samfya and they may even be interested in short term missions there in partnership with us. What a great day and what sweet fellowship!!

This week will be further meetings with missions people, Grace Church staff, Scott & Patti, other friends... (and a side trip for Katie to Disneyland!!). Thanks for your ongoing prayers. We are really looking forward to getting home!!

The Roman Bath house in Bath.

Donald and Katie with Sylvia - Donald's mum's friend.

Hi there,

Well here we are here in Los Angeles! Oh it is so nice to be here with the Kaya Family. I don’t know if I told you before but I had said to Donald (in NZ) that I wanted to catch up with the Kaya Family and he gave me a really funny look. I then asked him if he didn’t want too and he told me we were staying with them.
Let me tell you a bit about the Kaya Family. There is Jon and Debbie – they are the parents. We knew them when we lived in LA when Donald was attending Seminary. They had Hannah and she now 15 years old. Now there is Jonathan (13years), David (11years), Joey (9 years) and they are also looking after their nephew Levi (8 years). Debbie home schools all the children and they attend Grace Community Church. They live in Simi Valley and it takes them 30 minutes on the freeway – depending on traffic! They all play soccer. Debbie used to play soccer when she was at Notre dam College.

At the moment Jonathan is making pancakes – they smell very good!
The kids are great and Katie has fitted in just fine with them all and has just become one of the clan! She is having a blast.
Today we are meeting with the Sheahan family. We stayed with the Sheahan’s when we first came to LA and stayed with them for about a month before we found our own place. Terah (their oldest daughter) has kept in contact with me over the years so it will be really nice to catch up with them. We will be meeting with Terah and Josi and their husbands and children and also Tom with his new wife.
We will be going to Disneyland at some point as well but are not sure when! Yesterday we went shopping – Donald bought some shorts for just over $3.00 and a t shirt for just over $1.00. Katie and I bought some Jeans and belts and Katie bought a hat and also some hair stuff. I also bought some boring stuff like sheets and table runners – stuff for the house.

The kids are all watching America’s funniest home videos and you should hear all the laughing – it is so nice to hear them all enjoying themselves. Jon has just come in and said that he and Debbie just love Katie’s laugh!!

Well back to the UK. We had a great time there and the history is just amazing. We got to see so many places and meet so many people. People we have stayed with have been so kind to us and have spoiled us. We were able go to England, Scotland and Wales – we didn’t get to go to Ireland. Katie says that Mr J will be disappointed that we didn’t get to see his homeland!
Well I need to go now and get ready for the day.
Talk to you all later.

Up, up and away ... again!

Hello there everyone,

As I am typing this we are 36000 feet above the ground – Yep that’s right we are in the air on our way to L.A. So far it has been an ok flight with the pilot putting the seat belt sign on a couple of times. I am so sick of watching bad movies and the only age appropriate movie for Katie has been ‘Cars’ and she has seen it a lot of times before. She has now decided to have a sleep but that isn't working. Donald has had a snooze and is now reading a book called ‘Liberating the African Soul’ by Felix Muchimba. Felix is the principal of GLO in Ndola.

Ohhhhh I sure hate the loos on the planes and I especially hate how loud it is when you flush it!!!!! Hahahaha It sounds as though it would suck you right out with it! Ohhh well only another 4 hours to go! We are above Winnipeg, Canada.

The Uk has been a very interesting place to visit. We have met lots of people that Donald has been able to talk to about Samfya and has had a positive response to the work at the school. Even on our last night he had a meeting but we did that over dinner and it was with Malcolm Houghton.

Malcolm Houghton is Stephen’s cousin, and Levy and Agnes’ home was once his. His parents were missionaries there in Samfya so he was very interested to find out how the Bible School was. We had dinner in a pub which had amazing food and even a few different types of curries that were all part of a smorgasbord dinner.

Last night we stayed at a Holiday Inn Express so that we were close to the airport. It has only been opened for 3 ½ weeks so it was really flash (well for us anyway). Thankfully it didn’t have a flash price!

I don’t think I would like to live in England. If you live in the city there are sooooo many people, but if you live in the country well.... there are still so many people and the old country roads are sooooo narrow, that in some places (a lot actually) there is only one lane! Some of the places looked like Coronation Street with all the houses all joined together. There are some individual houses but they cost the earth to rent or own and they all have to be a certain style.

Ohhhh dear we are going over some bumps again – I really don’t like them! Katie is becoming very restless. It is hard to do a long flight during the day when you are usually awake. It is a lot easier when you fly at night and you can sleep! It will be about 1.30pm when we land in LA.

Anyway back to England. There are so many castles and when we first got here we would all get really excited about seeing it but then at the end it was oh look there is another castle! We got and English Heritage Pass which enabled us to see a lot of the castles and Hadrian’s Wall. All of these were on our way to different places. More bumps again!!!

We went to Goodrich Castle which is just outside of Wales and we looked over the river (that separates England and Wales). When we got into the car Katie said “oh isn’t it a shame that we couldn’t just drive into Wales to say that we have been there. She obviously hadn’t seen the signs saying Wales! Oh dear now we have to put our seatbelts on ohhhhh I don’t like this!

Just as we went past the sign that said Welcome to Wales, Donald passed a truck so she still didn’t realise that we were in Wales! We soon told her and she smiled and told us we were mean. We stayed the night in a place called Chepstow. Well I must close the computer now as I don’t have much battery left – I will finish this blog update later.

Motherwell, Scotland

Hi there everyone,
Well we are at the GLO centre in Motherwell, Scotland. Donald had a meeting yesterday with the principal who used to be the principal at Samfya Bible School, many years ago. He also took the devotions for the students this morning. Today it has been raining a lot.
We went to see a Loch(a lake) today, but it was too wet so we just drove around looking and window shopping!

Katie's cold seems to be getting better but the little (or not so little) rascal decided to share it with her parents!!! Hopefully we won't get it as bad as she did!

We are just about to head out for dinner so I had better go. We are certainly getting sick of living out of suitcases and are really looking forward to coming home again.

We leave Motherwell tomorrow (Saturday) and are going to be in Manchester. Donald still hasn't been able to get to a football match which has been a shame.

Well Donald has just woken up, so we will now go and get some dinner.
Talk to you all later.

Gwen.

Raining in Scotland!!

Well we have made it to Scotland (just over the border in Lockerbie) and are having a great time of fellowship with Geoff & Janet Rushton. This couple run a trust that supplies book resources to works all around the world and today we are going to their warehouse to chose some books for the Samfya Library. There trust has also done some work in printing Bemba bibles, so we are investigating possible means
of working with them on this. Please continue to pray for our meetings with people.

The church in Eythorne, Dover, was a real blessing. They have a history that extends back to the 1500’s, the oldest Baptist church in UK. There are people in the church who are very interested in being part of building teams that may go down to assist in the building at Samfya.

To encourage you further, here is part of a report from one graduate by the name of Charles Chola. He and two other men went on a short mission trip into the Congo from 1-6 September. They were working with three recent church plants in a very remote part of Congo:

Distance Travelled - 78 kms
Transport Used - Bicylce, boat and on foot (most on foot!!)
Type of work done - Evangelism (open air and door to door), Teaching
Number of those who believed - 27
Problems - Having just one bible and no hymn book at each church, and the fall of the church building at Kabumba (due to severe winds)
Way forward -
* Pray that God can raise up people to help in the rebuild of this church wall before the rains
* Pray that God can open doors that some people can help this area with Bibles and Hymn books
* Pray that the church of Christ can start growing in Labanga area and that the Spirit of the Lord can move in this area
* pray that God raises people to be visiting this area

It is such a blessing to see the commitment that so many of these graduates have to gospel ministry. We were able to give Charles two boxes of bibles (48 total) which he will sell to these churches and the money raised will go to rebuilding the church wall. But as you can see the needs are ever present. We just can’t seem to supply enough bibles for this work! It would be wonderful to supply double that we do - please pray that God will raise up further partners with us in encouraging the work of God in village life Zambia.

Hello from Scotland!

Hi everyone,
Sorry I can't put any photos on today as I am using someone else's computer so this is just a quick hello.

Donald has an update as well but it is on his computer and can't update until we get connected to the internet.

It has been raining here today, but it isn't cold.
Katie still has a really bad cold and now I have a cough. Hopefully it will all be gone by the time Tuesday comes and we are on the plane to LA.

We have seen lots of castles and ruins of castles. Katie has really loved these as all of a sudden it has bought her Church History lessons to life.

People we have stayed with have been really great and looked after us well. We are at the moment in Scotland, in a town Lockerbie.

The last place we stayed at there was a girl Katie's age so Katie had a nice time being able to be with kids again and not just adults. The couple we stayed with in Gosport said it was nice to see that although Katie looks so much older than 12 yrs old that she still acted her age!

Katie has had another growth spurt and has grown out of most of the clothes we bought with us. We are hanging out for LA to do some shopping!

Well I must go as there is a coffee waiting for me to drink hehe

Lots of love to you all.
Gwen

Greetings from Gosport

Greetings to all from the Hampshire Coast (Portsmouth). We have had a wonderful three days sharing with Chris & Stella Fair. Our meeting with the Echoes of Service people has had to be postponed until 5th October so that did change our plans somewhat. We are currently staying with Martin & Naomi Cooper who were missionaries in Zambia for seven years and this morning I have a men’s breakfast to speak at.

We then drive to “the white cliffs of Dover” and on Sunday share at a church there where a fellow TMS graduates is pastor. This service is part of their harvest celebration and people bring food offerings to go to those in need and the service has a major missions emphasis. Please pray that the challenge in missions would touch hearts and encourage people in a closer devotion to Christ.

After the weekend we travel to Scotland for meetings with people in Lockerbie and Motherwell. Your prayers for safety and the opportunity to encourage others in the truth are coveted - we are certainly looking forward to being home with you all.

Friday Morning

I climbed up into the window in the castle ruins!
Lunch time at Rye.

This morning we leave Chris and Stella. They go back to work and we go to Gosport.

Yesterday we went to Rye, Hastings and Battle. Katie was so excited to go to Battle. I was wondering how she even knew about Battle as I had never heard of it. Well she told me Mr J. has been teaching us about the William the Conqueror and the Battle against the Normans and the Saxons (known as the Battle of Hastings) had a Battle in Battle!!! She was so excited. We were trying to decide whether or not to go and have a look at the ruins of the Abbey in Battle. We decided we should – for Katie’s sake. She was now really excited and said that Mr J. will be so proud of her. She spouted off all the information she knew (which I must admit was quite a bit). She was happy that she knew how it all ended now as when she left school Mr J. hadn’t finished reading the book! We walked around the battlefield but we couldn’t look in the main building as it is now a very flash school. Can you imagine going to school where William the Conqueror had fought a battle!!! Wow! Somehow we missed taking a photo of Katie at the ruins - what a shame!!!

We had scones for lunch in Rye. We were in this very quaint little cafe that seemed to specialise in cupcakes! Of course Katie had to have a cupcake for her lunch.

Hastings was not like our Hastings. It was right by the sea. It is a fishing city and didn’t smell very nice.

After our walk around Battle we went back to Rye and bought fish and chips. We had to have it at least once while we were in England.

We left there and picked up Ben and his girlfriend Emma. It was lovely to see them and spend some time with them. Ben talks with a real English accent now.

Well I must sign off again as we need to pack up again and head out.

Catch you all later

Gwen

Ps – Katie is still all stuffed up, but at least she is starting to get some sleep with the drugs kind of working.

Canterbury

Donald and Chris
Stella, Gwen and Katie

Today is Thursday. Yesterday we went to Canterbury. We saw a lot of old buildings and walked around the town. It was a fun day. Chris and Stella have taken time off work to be with us which is really nice. We have been having a great time with them – lots of laughing and joking around as well. It is nice to see where they live and actually stay with them.

Katie has an amazingly heavy cold, even though she has been taking her antihistamine! Yesterday we got her a bottle of otrivin and at least last night she was able to get a more restful sleep. I sure hope it doesn’t end up in an ear infection like it usually does in NZ and that it clears up before we get back on another plane. She is doing amazingly well even with the late nights and early mornings – although I must admit that she is still in bed as I write this and it is 8.00am! Not like her at all.

Yesterday we were inside looking at the Canterbury Cathedral – it was amazing although I wouldn’t want our church to be like it! There were groups of children on a school trip and we decided to listen in. He was telling the children about Thomas Beckett, who ended up being an arch bishop. Anyway the guide continued to tell the children that Thomas Beckett had excommunicated 3 other priests and the children were then told that once you were excommunicated you then go to hell! It was a good teaching time about salvation with Katie and that once you are saved we are always saved and it doesn’t matter what others say! (the men were excommunicated because the priest didn’t approve of something they did – which wasn’t a sin – they simply had offended him). It was very interesting that they were allowed to talk like that to the kids on a school trip – we can’t in NZ! I just wanted to grab the kids and take them out of there and tell them the truth!

We also walked around a castle in ruins and also on the old city wall. What an amazing day we had. Katie has been learning lots about the history in London. She has also been very excited when she knew some of the facts that she had learned from school in Church History Lessons. All of a sudden her Church History lessons have come to life – well sort of.

Chris wanted to do go on a punting boat so we all went punting on the river at Canterbury and through the country side.

Home again and a late night for Katie again. Ohhhh well I guess we will be home soon enough for her to catch up on sleep.

Buckingham Palace
Katie on the London Eye, Ohhh how can she stand so close to the edge
Meryl on the London Eye

Me trying to be brave at the end, on the London eye

Well Today is Tuesday and we are still in London. Today we will leave Doug and Royale’s home. We are very thankful for their hospitality and letting us stay with them and their sons! We have had a great time here. We are going to go and stay with Chris and Stella Fair today. We were able to catch up with them a bit last Sunday and it was wonderful.

Yesterday we did some touristy things – we went on an open top double decker bus and did a tour of the city. It was great and I would recommend it to anyone who was coming here. We got to see a lot more than we would have by ourselves and learned lots too.

We also did the London Eye. For those of you who don’t know what that is – well it is like a VERY HUGE ferris wheel. Instead of being in little seats you are in a big pod sort of thing that can take 25 people I think! Well, I don’t like heights as you all know, but I still thought that I would be brave and go on it anyway. I got on and it wasn’t so bad I thought. Then all of a sudden I looked out and there was nothing under us and unfortunately I was not brave anymore! I told Donald that I wanted to get off but the only way down now was to finish the ride, or push the emergency button and then you could get out and walk down the stairs, (ummm I don’t think so!!!!). Ohhhhh dear. I sat on the wooden seat in the middle of the pod with my eyes shut and my hands over my eyes! My knees were like jelly. My hands were so wet and by now I actually felt like I was going to be sick! My everloving husband told me to pray and then I would be over it! Ummm My lovely daughter tried to console me but I didn’t want her to miss the opportunity to enjoy it – she isn’t scared of heights! I told her to just go and enjoy the view and that I would be alright! On our way down now and it is a bit better as I can now see all the bits of the BIG wheel we are on. I never did get off the chair until it was time to get off. Katie said, ‘Mum at least you can say you went on the London Eye’. An old man when he saw that I wasn’t covering my eyes anymore came over and asked me if I was ok now and that he has been on the London Eye a lot of times and that there had never been any trouble and it has been going for 10 years! Even that wasn’t very comforting as it has been going for 10 years so isn’t it about time for something to break!

We also had Donald’s sister with us for the day and it really was great to see her.

We also went on a boat ride on the River Thames and that was wonderful as well. There is so much history here and it is all very interesting. We got to see Buckingham Palace. The queen was in but was obviously too busy to come and say hello to us! Hehe We got to the Westminister Abbey but got there 10 minutes late. We got there at 3.40pm – not very tourist friendly hours that is for sure. But anyway even the outside was amazing. Katie was a bit disappointed as she didn’t get to see where David Livingstone grave! Ohhh well at least she got to see the building where he was buried. We saw lots of other churches and buildings as well. They are all incredible!

We got to see Big Ben up close. Wow the photos just don’t do it any justice! I don’t know what other word to use but amazing! By the way did you know that Big Ben is actually the bell and the clock is actually called the clock tower – I didn’t!

We went under the Waterloo Bridge and did you know that it was built by women. The men had all gone off to war so the women built the bridge!

We also got to see the London Bridge. Did you know that it has been rebuilt 6 times! The second time was when the nursery rhyme London Bridge is falling down was started. The Saxons would throw rocks at the Vikings that would come up the river and so they tied ropes to the bridge and pulled it down! Just some other useful little bits that I have learned while being here!

Hi from London

Donald and Katie with the London eye in the background! -opps it is sideways again!!!
Katie and Gwen in front of the London Tower.
Big Ben _ sorry it is sideways not sure how to rotate it!
Donald beside the foundations that Charles Spurgeon laid.

We arrived in Heathrow, London after a flight of 10 ½ hours. Donald and Katie had been able to sleep but I couldn’t – I just dozed on and off!

We are staying with Doug and Royal and they have been looking after us really well and are very helpful with what to see and do here.

Saturday after arriving and having a shower we headed out to see London! We took a train into the city. We intended to go on the London eye but have decided after seeing the queue that we would do that on Monday once everyone was back at work! We went to the London Tower and they have a beefeater ( a guy dressed in a red dress and tights) as a guide. They give you all the history and a lot of the history here is very gory! Katie got quite uneasy and then ended up in our bed in the middle of the night! He talked about things like the tortures that happened, the people who got beheaded and also about 2 little boys that went missing and then they found their bodies later!

We got to ride on a double decker bus, a train and the tube. We have also seen Big Ben (from a distance). The London tower is where the British Crown Jewels are and we got to see them - ummm I wonder if they really are real!!!

We got back home at round 7pm and then us and Royal went to the local Indian Restaurant. After parking the car, we were walking to the restaurant when we heard an old man yelling. He was homeless and was yelling at another man. The other man ended up turning his walking stick upside down and hitting the homeless man a couple of times. It was a very yuck thing to watch! Ummm maybe that was what was upsetting Katie!

Anyway we got to have our dinner and the atmosphere in this place was incredible. It was just buzzing! We got home and I realised that I hadn’t had any sleep since 7am Friday and my eyes were starting to play tricks on me so it was time for Katie and I to go to bed! The nice thing was that church here didn’t start until 11am so we had a big sleep in!

Today is Sunday and Donald is sharing at church about Samfya Bible School and also doing the teaching. Charles Spurgeon helped to establish this church – how amazing to be here! Chris and Stella Fair have also joined us and we spent the day with them today. We went to visit Krystle and she is not well at the moment. As we parted ways they were then on their way to the hospital and Krystle was now there! We had dinner at Leicester Square! Katie has found it very exciting as she loves to play monopoly and we are seeing so many places from the board! The 5 of us walked though Kensington Garden and Hyde Park. There is a huge monument that Queen Victoria had put up as a memorial for her husband Prince Albert! It was massive – I told Donald not to expect one that big hehe

We had to go on the tube again today. I have decided that I don’t like riding the tube. As for getting there tonight we had to go down 3 floors down (I think). Now you all know I don’t like heights well we have now gone on an escalator that was the whole 3 floors all at once!!! Yep it was really long. The first time we went on it, it was full and Stella and I were chatting so as we got on it I hadn’t noticed! After a while I thought gee whiz this is taking ages and looked ALL the way up. Now my knees are going like jelly and I really don’t like having sweaty palms!!!

Ohhhh dear tomorrow we are planning to go on the London eye!!! That is like a VERY big ferris wheel (well over 130 metres up!) but it goes really slowly and takes about a ½ hour! Ohhhh I am so not looking forward to it however I will be a brave girl (hopefully) and do it anyway despite as Donald calls it and irrational fear!

Donald got a skype call from his sister Meryl and Meryl and Denys are in London! We are going to try and meet up with them tomorrow if we can.

Well I really should go to bed now as it is getting rather late!

Well update again soon.

Here we go again....

A surfer at the Jefferies Bay Beach

It is now 6am and we are at Lusaka International Airport and are heading to O.R. Tembo Airport. It is a 2 hour flight, but then we had a four hour stopover. Our flight was very smooth which is great for me! We looked at some of the shops and then had a drink at the Mugg and Bean Coffee Shop. It was great. Now it is time to go to our next flight and we are going to Port Elizabeth. Ummm who stopped praying for us? As we were descending it was very bumpy! Port Elizabeth (P.E. as it is referred too here), is known as the windy city! We are met at the airport by Wynand (pronounced Veinard!). He is a Masters Seminary Graduate and he took us to Jefferies Bay. Hey Denys and Elvira everyone here talks like you! It is really lovely here, but Denys you got us here on false pretences – it is FREEZING and very windy!!! The meeting went really well last night. Today Wynand took us to Wimpy’s for breakfast then the Billabong Factory Shop. We went to see the surf. It was amazing but very cold. Soon we were back at Wynard’s parents flat (where we stayed) and Neil from Port Elizabeth picked us up, to take us to his place. Neil is also a Masters Seminary Graduate. His wife’s name is Nicole. They are lovely and she is expecting a baby. Tonight we are having a meeting with the church that Neil is pasturing. I am sure that will be great. Tomorrow afternoon we leave P.E. and fly back to Joberg then the long flight to Heathrow!! It is about 11 ½ hours.

Wow I still can’t believe that we are now leaving Africa. It has been an amazing experience being here. It has been great to see Samfya Bible School and it’s ministries, to meet Lucy Chama again and renew our friendship, meeting new friends (like Patricia) and also to see all the people and things that Donald has talked about for many years. I still cannot believe that Donald got me to come here to Zambia, however I am grateful to God and to our church for giving me (and Katie) this opportunity. Guess what – it hasn’t been as hard as I thought it would be. God has been gracious in allowing us to stay at the Brubacher’s home. It was a great place and we even enjoyed Copper!!! Copper gave us lots of excitement that’s for sure! I still scream at the lizards etc and I am soooo glad that I didn’t actually see any rats! Seeing the country here is just amazing. It is really big. You see land (except for the lake of course) no matter where you look. Sometimes we think that just over the hill will be the sea, but no it is more land!!!

Please pray that as we travel to the UK and to LA that we will be able to be an encouragement to the people we come across and that we will be able to generate interest for Samfya Bible School.

The next time I update the blog will be from London!!!

Our Last Days In Lusaka.

Donald and Katie at a shopping place in Lusaka. Take note of all the rubbish that is behind them!

Well after our time at the Protea Hotel we went back to the Kilimanjaro Lodge and spent the rest of our time there.

Anne (the owner) is wonderful! She is so willing to help us in whatever we need. If any of you are ever in Lusaka I would suggest you stay here at the Kilimanjaro Lodge! It is a peaceful, quiet and lovely place to stay.

We went and saw some more souvenir places and also met with Billy and Jenny Fuller and their son and his family for dinner - a Chinese restaurant which was wonderful.

The next day we tried to contact my family in Australia but it just wouldn’t work. We went back to town to put some diesel in the truck before we took it to where it needed to be for the next people.

Well.... Donald did a ‘u’ turn so that we could get to the petrol station. There was this little white car that pulled up behind us and this lady in the back seat kept looking at us. Donald hadn’t noticed her as he was dealing with the people filling our car. Eventually she got out of the car and came to the driver’s side of the car and asked me what we were doing here. I was a bit confused as to why she was asking me and I told her that we had just come from Samfya. It turned out that she was a police woman – well that is what she told us. She had no police identification or uniform, she only had a piece of paper for a ticket and a police hat! Well she told me that Donald had made an illegal ‘u’ turn and she considered what he had done to be very dangerous. She said that they had been patrolling the area and have caught him. Donald asked her how he was supposed to know that he wasn’t allowed to do a ‘u’ turn when there were no signs to say so, and that all the vehicles were stopped and actually jammed so they couldn’t move and that was why he made the turn. . She then looked at me and said that there had been an accident there before and so there wasn’t a sign!! Ummm how were we supposed to know that you weren’t allowed to Donald told her! She said it didn’t matter and she was still going to issue him with a fine! By now she is sitting in our car and said that the fine would be K270,000. Donald had to go and pay for the diesel and she asked me what Donald’s job was. I told her that he was a Bible Teacher at Samfya Bible School and that in our country he was a pastor. Her face and attitude changed when she heard that. ! She told us that her senior officer was here too. We couldn’t see him anywhere so Donald asked to see him. As soon as she heard that she backed off and asked Donald if he was sorry. Donald said that he was IF he had actually committed an offense so she said that because he was sorry she would not give him the fine! She said it was good just to forgive people sometimes! We think it was actually a scam rather than her being an official police officer!!! Just as well Donald has had enough experience in Zambia. This was the 5^th time in 3 months he had been pulled over.

Next Donald dropped Katie and I off at Arcades Mall and he went to drop the car off and was going to catch a taxi back. Before long he was back (he had actually hitch hiked!). We wondered what we were going to do to fill in the rest of the day. Katie suggested we go and watch a movie which we did. While in there I asked Donald if he remembered to get the camera out of the car which he had put under the driver’s seat. Oh dear!!! After the movie we had our final ‘Food Fayre’ ice cream and the driver from the lodge was there to pick us up to take us back to the lodge. Donald asked him if we could go back to the car to get our camera. YAY he said that would not be a problem. Thankfully the camera was still there.

Things went well back at the lodge and we also had our dinner there which was really great. We got our bags sorted and off to bed. We have to be up at 5am as our plane leaves at 6am!

That was our last day in Zambia.

OW – THAT HURT!!!

Patricia squealing with delight!
Me feeding the Kudu
The huge lioness

The EMI team have gone now. They are now in Livingstone doing some touristy things. Yesterday (Sunday) we went to the Protea Hotel Safari Lodge. Katie and I really wanted to see African Lions in Africa and at this late stage didn’t mind where. At this hotel they have a wildlife park and also a lion enclosure.

On our drive through Lusaka we see lots of rubbish again. We have gotten used to seeing it. It still grosses me out but that is how it is here. Anyway as we were driving there was a lady with her son and they had a garden hoe and were scraping in the rubbish. This really upset me. It wasn’t very nice seeing someone scrape through rubbish like that!

The hotel was really nice and we had a good time. We saw the lions. There are 4. A mother and 3 of her children, 1 male and 2 females. The mother had to be separated from the rest as she kept fighting with her son! She was huge. Her paws were so big. The others were big too but she was bigger than the rest!

Yesterday we went on a walk which is when we saw the lions. On our walk we also saw lots of hartebeests (a type of antelope), and some Zebras. We also saw lots of birds. One cheeky bird warned them that we were getting close and they all took off! Oh well we did get a couple of photos.

We get back from our walk and we had an hour to just laze around! Katie and Donald decide to go for a swim. After a while they came back in and Katie was buzzing. She had been able to feed and touch a Kudu. For those of you who don’t know a Kudu is an antelope – a very big one! Sooo I go out to see the kudu. She wasn’t there instead there was a bush buck (again for those who don’t know it is a type of antelope – but a small one). Kids were feeding her and then started to chase her which wasn’t too nice! Anyway it wasn’t a Kudu. I thought Katie and Donald had exaggerated about how big this Kudu was. Donald and Katie get out of their togs and we are waiting in the reception when along comes the Kudu! This thing is huge!!! Turns out she is a grandma. She is a friendly one who is used to having people around feeding her bread and touching her. Ohhh I got to touch her and give her some bread. That was cool! Then she thought I had more and when she realised that I didn’t she bit my hand!!! Yes you can guess what happened – I screamed. It didn’t hurt, it just gave me a fright but I did make Donald, Katie and the staff laugh! After a few moments she head butted a lady. I was glad that she just bit me!

We also went on a safari – yep just like in the movies with a crate on the back of a ute for you to sit on! We were off Yay I wonder what we were going to see. Oh dear that doesn’t sound very good. Oh no, it isn’t very good. The man is pouring cold water into the radiator and you should hear the noise it is making – kind of a loud gurgling noise ummmm even sounds like the water is going right through the radiator! The driver gets us back to the hotel, but that is the end of the drive. Not very impressive I must say, all we saw were some warthogs run across the road and we have seen loads of them. How disappointing! We get back to reception and they tell us that the vehicle will be fixed by morning and that they would take us out then and what time would we like it. Donald told them their first ride, which ends up being at 8am. That is fine we can cope with that. We are in our room and we get a phone call to ask us if 9am would be ok. Ok Donald says. By this point we aren’t very hopeful that it would actually happen!

Dinner was really good. It was a brie (a BBQ!). There was so much food and it was really good. Then we went back to our room and went to bed. We were able to talk to Chris and Stella on Skype about our trip to the UK so that was all good – now to get some sleep!

Ok Monday morning now. Wow the breakfast is amazing as well. It is another smorgasbord. Great food at this place. If anyone goes hungry it would be their own fault and the breakfast is included in the room price – even better!

Breakfast is finished so we go and pack our bags so that when the safari is finished we can leave. So now we are waiting at reception for the truck. We get told that it is on its way. Then we get told that they are coming now. Ummmm I wonder if it really is!

YAY it is here. It is a different vehicle. We had a really good time and saw lots of different types of antelope and a warthog family! There were also lots of birds but we can’t seem to get their picture. They are just too quick!!!

The safari takes about an hour. We are now back in Lusaka staying at Kilimanjaro Lodge. It is beautiful here – so restful. It is soooo restful that Donald is fast asleep and is even snoring! It is the middle of the day but he has been working very hard and is exhausted! Katie is bored so I had better go and do something with her.

We are here until Wednesday morning and then we are flying to Port Elizabeth.

Talk to you all soon.

Gwen

Our last moments in Samfya.

Patricia receiving her certificate from Gwennie's School of Home Cooking

As I have told you before Patricia was just trying to learn everything she could and at the moment especially in the kitchen. She was joking around with me telling me that she needs to get a certificate, soooo you should all know me by now! I made her a certificate and we presented it to her at the last lunch that she helped me with! Here is the photo of her getting her certificate – if only the picture could let you hear how she squealed- it was very cool!

The New Master Plan!!

Hi all - yes here it is the new master plan. I will write more about it later but you will see all the accommodation along the lake edge maximising the major asset of the lake! There is one entry to the property off the road and all the Bible Training component is moved onto the lake side of the road, with agriculture and medical clinic on the other side. You will even see a football pitch - a great asset for outreach in the community and also income generation for training camps etc. The Bible School staff and board are greatly excited about the potential and possibilities in the future which includes seeing up to 60 students on site in a two year programme.

WOW this is fantastic, it will take years to establish, but think of the blessing to rural churches through a facility that is built well and with proper design. Thanks for all your prayers and support.

Another Copper Story!

new hair styles!!

Tonight (Wednesday) we had 25 for dinner and we had a BBQ. I did way too much potato salad but everything else was just right. We had a choice of apple pie or lemon meringue pie. I think everyone enjoyed the food and the night.
It was now 9:30pm and was time for us to leave. We hopped in the car and home we came. Copper met us at the drive.

Ohhhhh dear Donald has left his back pack inside and the house keys are in it! All the windows have bars on them and Katie is too big now to get through so Donald and I certainly are!!! None of the doors are unlocked. We end up calling Rosemary (the housekeeper) and we drive to her house!

Copper is bouncing along in front of the car. He is so funny. Donald says he is like Tigger from Winnie the Pooh. He came quite a long way but doesn’t like to follow the car – he has to run in front. Donald had to try to dodge him a couple of times or Copper would be no more!

Well this must be Rosemary’s home as there is a light on and people look like they are calling us. Ohhh dear it is sort of like a pub and there is a man wanting to get into our car. Donald just told him no and we drive off. Oh look there is another man – no not him either he is drunk and he also wants t o get into our car. Hey we are not a taxi!!! Oh look there is Rosemary and her husband! Thank goodness it is them this time. She thinks it is funny that we have locked ourselves out!

Yay we are on the homeward stretch and where is that Copper! I don’t think he has made it home yet! Oh yes there he is – totally exhausted he doesn’t even come down the drive and waits until we are just about at the top and then bounces like Tigger in FRONT of the car again!!!

We are inside now and Donald realises that his backpack is actually at the guesthouse and not inside our place. All we had to do was to go and pick it up! OHHHH well it did make for an interesting end to our day!

Today is Thursday. Tomorrow is our last day in Samfya! I still cannot believe that I have come here! I never thought I would. It has been great even with the critters that I don’t like. As I have said before it is a lot like the Fiji that I grew up in. It is very beautiful here when the wind isn’t blowing a gale. It is however getting very hot, which does make the day a little unbearable at times – even a shower doesn’t cool you off! God has been very gracious (and the Brubacher family) by letting us live where we have been. It is a wonderful place set on the hill overlooking the lake.

Copper will leave a precious memory of our time here – some funny, some annoying, some NAUGHTY, and some very cute!

Today Katie and I got our hair done. We both got the same and the style is called corn rows. Donald doesn’t like mine but he really likes Katie’s! I think it would be very cool to have this hairdo in the heat but I don’t know how long it will last with our slippery hair. Katie is very exhausted as we have had late nights (for her) and early mornings. I think it has worked out well that we are going to Lusaka with the team as it means we will have a couple of days to just relax and re charge our batteries. I need to remember that my daughter is only 12 years old and not 35!!!

Tonight is the last dinner I will cook in Africa! Tomorrow we are having homemade pizza for lunch and then are all going to one of the lodges for dinner. This has come about because I will need to have all borrowed kitchen items back to their owners, before we leave and Donald is talking about leaving Samfya before 6am! The road to Lusaka isn’t so busy at that time of the day!

So tomorrow for me will be spent cleaning the guest house kitchen, returning borrowed items, cooking lunch and also doing some baking for the team to take with them to Lusaka and Livingstone. There will also be a presentation in the afternoon from the team. It will be really great to see how they have put everything together.

Katie is in bed and Donald is packing our bags as we need to get our luggage to the Fullers tomorrow. They are coming to Lusaka and so are helping with the luggage and also are taking 2 people with them.
Talk to you later.
Gwen
Hey who turned the lights off – no one did, the power is off again!

Congo Church Plants

Well the EMI team continues to put in long days and are coming up with some great concepts and ideas for the future. Keep praying for their last two days of work here that the plan will formulate well and that the Bible School board and staff will be greatly encouraged as they purpose towards the future.

I had a visit from a graduate yesterday. Charles was just on mission in the Congo working with three church plants. These churches only had one bible each and in one church a wall had blown down through some heavy winds. We have been able to pass on two boxes of Bibles for these churches and the money raised from selling them to these local Christians will go into rebuilding the wall!!

Over twenty people committed their life to the Lord through the mission in these churches - praise God for the commitment of Charles to this very remote area in the Congo. Keep praying that the graduates will excel in the work of the Lord!

OUR LAST DAYS – WOW

Gwen & Patricia


This has been such an amazing time! Did you ever think I would ever come here to Samfya and enjoy my time here. I still scream at the critters much to the delight of any locals nearby – I am glad I have been able to provide them with so much entertainment. I have a best friend here and her name is Patricia. I have written about her before and she has certainly proved here worth with the team here. She has helped me so much in the kitchen but has also even organised the ladies doing the cleaning, dishes and laundry. I am supposed to do that but they don’t speak much English and I speak even less Bemba so she has been a god send!

Yesterday I was out looking for Donald when I heard Patricia scream. I thought that isn’t like her I wonder what has happened. Well when I got back she said look at what I found in the cupboard! It was a bat! Now how on earth the bat got in the cupboard we will never know, but one of the cleaning ladies took it and killed it!!!!! Then they took it outside and guess what happened when they showed me – yep I screamed! You would all be proud!

The EMI team are here and they are great. There is a wide range of ages and they are very hard workers. Some are not well and they are all battling with jet lag but they still carry on. Katie has been enjoying watching the different things like the surveying and the water testing. The first day they were here Katie had a tummy bug and we had to get someone to look after her as I was supposed to be doing the catering! She is doing fine now which is great.

I think they have been enjoying the meals. Patricia has been here helping as she wanted to learn how to cook some different things. She has certainly mastered it. She is a detail person which means that the two of us work well together.

Well this must be the shortest blog update by me yet, but I do need to go and actually do some work in the kitchen.
I guess my next update will be from Lusaka
Bye for now
Gwen

EMI Team at Samfya!!

Wow - what a busy few days getting the Engineering Ministries International team to Samfya and then helping them in their work while they are here. But also - what an amazing team!! The skills they bring and fantastic - surveying, agriculture, water, architecture, electrical, civil engineering... They work together so well and are so focused and have incredible expertise from work they have done around the world. Praise God for dedicated people who are professionals in their fields who love the Lord and want to use their skills for the benefit of God’s Work.

We are now two days in to their programme and already very full concept ideas are on the table. Various water tests have been done to establish what will be best to use. Surveying is nearing a more complete on sight picture to allow site design. Information has been pouring in from all the team - the result will be an excellent master plan for the future infrastructure of the school.

Would you please continue to pray that these men and women would be blessed in their work here and the end result will provide the kind of plan that enhances and blesses the training ministry that happens from this place. The goal is men and women to be equipped for local church ministry in rural areas and for this to be done with excellence!

On Saturday the team and our family will all leave for Lusaka. Please pray for these last remaining days here in Samfya. What a blessing it has been and what a privilege we have to support the work of the Lord in this needy country.

Emails Received

Greetings all. Here are two emails that I have just received - praise the Lord for the work He is doing.

Greetings in the name of our Lord.

We are grateful. Thanks for your visit and the word you shared with us through the Holy Spirit. They have brought changes in our churches in Livingstone district. We are praying that God will allow you in future to visit us again. Once again we are grateful thanks for the gifts we received (bibles) . They are very helpful in the work of our Lord. We thank for sisters Katie and Gwen, the love she had for us and support for your ministry. Brother Paul and wife Janet for acceptance to accompany you with joy.

May God bless you. Yours in Christ.
Frank & Regina Musenga


Hi Donald,

Greetings in Christ from Jo’burg. I knew you would rejoice to know that, this past Sunday, we baptised Mapule, a young lady who was saved under your preaching from 2 Tim. 1 on that Sun. PM when you were here. She read that passage in her baptismal testimony, and it was a powerful, Christ-centered testimony. Praise the Lord for using you.

Trust you & yours are well there in Zambia,
Tim Cantrell

Fantastic Phone Call From Home

Have you ever spent 2.3million on groceries? Well that was our bill at the checkout the other day as we prepare for the EMI team - they must be big eaters!! Wednesday Donald heads to Lusaka and the team arrives on Thursday. It will be all go then in making sure that their visit is as successful as we can possibly make it. Please pray that the team settles in quickly and has excellent insights regarding the sight and how we can use it and develop the best master plan possible.

Well this morning we had the most encouraging phone call from our home church family, Riverbend Bible Church. We were all able to talk to our church family. They were gathered for a Sunday evening potluck meal, especially to talk to us and they broadcast the phone call over the church sound system. It was so good to talk with ‘home’ and field many questions about the ministry here and life in general. Katie enjoyed saying hello to friends as did Gwen as she answered questions about her work here (and her fears of lizards, bats...).

The areas of primary need that we identified were the need of an administrator, the need of discretionary funding for the Bible School budget, the need of infrastructure development. As well as this we spoke of the village visitation programme and the need to make this even more effective by more regular visitation to the rural areas. It has been amazing how God has opened doors into the hearts and lives of the people here. This extended visit by our church has certainly deepened our partnership and enabled us to have an even more clear view of the issues that are faced in ministering in rural village life Zambia.

Well our formal spiritual training programmes are complete. We have travelled thousands of kilometres in bringing the Word of God to our brothers and sisters and the response has been a huge blessing. But the next two weeks will be pivotal as we face the future of our partnership here. The spiritual work continues (less formally) as we work together with our partners. Would you please pray that in the busyness of these two weeks that we will see an even greater bond and partnership established with the Bible School staff and board. Systems are being put in place, help in reporting, growth in friendship and love in the Lord. Your partnership in prayer is vital to all of this and the success of what we do together. Sola Deo Gloria

Fires around our house!

fire just down the hill
the water fight - amazing we had enough water!!

As I am writing this Donald and Katie are outside having a water fight! I hope they don’t use up all the water! Oh Donald has now decided to have the soap outside with him and is having a shower under the hose! Katie is giving hem instruction on how to wash his armpit!!! I guess it is rather hot at the moment. They are having a lot of fun!

This morning at 7am we had a call on Donald’s mobile phone from our church back in NZ. It was so nice to talk to people from home and I must admit had a tear in my eye as I watched Katie smile from ear to ear as she watched us talking and then when she was able to talk to her friends. It was certainly a lovely way to start our day.

Today we went to the English Speaking Church which is at the Bible School. It is like going back in time with no music (just a brother to start the hymns). They also have the old redemption hymnbook and the Mission Praise Book. At least they were songs that we knew and for once could sing along. They have two services in the morning. At the first one everyone is there and then when ministry starts the children go out to Sunday School. The second one is the breaking of bread and it is really weird as there is hardly anyone who attends! It is also a very short service.

After church Donald decided we would go and check out the lodge in Samfya. He was thinking that maybe in the future teams could stay there. It was very nice and even has a restaurant (Samfya style). While we were there Mr and Mrs Fuller pulled up wondering what we were doing. We ended up all having lunch together there which was really nice. Then we headed off for a Sunday drive. We saw another beautiful lake but couldn’t figure out how to get to it which was a shame. There were lots of people living out there which was also a surprise. There was even a great big SDA Conference centre. The conference centre just had lost of sticks that people tied reads around to make themselves little huts to sleep in.

Well we are back home now and as I said Donald and Katie are having a water fight! I am now typing up recipes for us to use while the EMI team are here. The reason I am typing and not just taking the books down there is that Patricia (my interpreter) wants to learn all the recipes that I am doing. She is really lovely and really wants to learn – not only cooking things but anything that will help her with her walk with God and how to look after her family. She is a wonderful godly woman whom I have a lot of respect for. I think she is thirties. I have written about her and her family before.

Today I spoke to Lucy and told her that it is not long before we leave and told her that every time Donald comes home from Zambia people ask how she is. I also told her that she is not forgotten. She told me to tell everyone that she is happy!

Copper has just decide to have a stroll through the house! He is wet from the water fight! He is just checking out what we are doing!

Copper the dog is still causing havoc! Yesterday Donald and Katie went down the hill to the lake for a swim and tied copper to the tyre but didn't put the tyre around a pipe in the back yard. Well he dragged the tyre half way down the hill. I saw him with some children and not realising that he was still tied to the tyre called him to come home. He tried but then i realised that he was tied to the tyre and the kids had the tyre. Ummmm I wondered what was going to happen. The kids heard me call Copper and so decided to roll the tyre up the the hill to me! They just about go the tyre with Copper attached home when Copper heard Katie scream. Donald had picked her up and dunked her in the water. Well that Copper (we still don't know how he did it) he got off the leash and took off down to the lake. He had a blast swimming in the lake. On his way home he chased the kids who were trying to get him home and when they were out of his range, they giggled and squealed with delight! I gave the boys a drink and some biscuits for their efforts.

People have been asking for prayer points from me and Katie and so here are a few for our final weeks in Zambia:

• As Katie and I are working with women serving the EMI team that we would be a good example – for me as a Christian woman and also for the both of us as they see a mother and daughter serve together.
• We would like to be able to leave Samfya with the team so that Donald doesn’t have to do another trip from Lusaka and back. So we need to be able to organise another vechile. Katie and I would like to see if we could find another game park to go to... We really want to see a lion in Africa. I know, I know it isn’t a ministry thing but we would REALLY like to see some.
• For me as I prepare to leave that I don’t become frustrated with the way things happen here – like the power and water situation. I have been coping fine with it so far but I don’t want to blow it in our last few weeks.
• That I will be a good example in front of the other women as a wife, mother and servant as we serve the EMI team. (I know it is sort of a repeat of the first one but it is a bit different).
• As you know Katie and I reacted to the Anti-malaria drug and so have not been taking any. Please pray for the three of us and our general health but also that in our last days here we won’t get malaria! The mosquitoes are starting to come out a bit more at the moment. We have had a few tummy bugs but not many and none of any consequence so we are very thankful for our good health so far. My diabetes has been great with my readings between 5.5 and 5.7 (for those who know about the readings!).
• For safety in our travels. Donald has to go and pick up the EMI team from Lusaka which is about an 8 hour drive and then (hopefully) we will all be going back with him. Then we fly to Joberg to Port Elizabeth and drive to Jefferies Bay, then back to Port Elizabeth and back to Joberg. From there we fly to Heathrow, London and hiring a car and driving to Scotland and back. Then it is to Los Angles and then home to NZ. So as you can see lots of travelling to do between now and actually getting home to the Hawkes Bay!

Well I had better to and finish typing these recipes. We are going to meet at 10.00am on Monday to start baking. I have been so thankful for my Rally Cookbook, the HCS cookbook and my Alison Holst muffin book. They have been so great. I did bring a diabetic book here as well but can’t get most of the ingredients here – ummmmm oh well that hasn’t been an issue.

The neighbours have lit a fire just across the road to get rid of the long grass etc. The fire is quite big and we can hear the crackling noise it is making. I sure hope it doesn’t jump across the road and come up the hill to see us.

Oh well time to go. Again it was soooo nice to hear from church this morning.

Love
Gwen

Why we don't favour public transport!!

Mambalima Conference

Greetings all. I have just returned from two nights at the Mambalima Conference. Thousands of people were in attendance, all camped out beside the Luapula River. It was hot (35C as I left) and dusty, but they were all enjoying the fellowship, teaching and choirs!

I was able to teach two sessions on Christian Marriage, bringing the challenge to the people to let the Word of God bring changes to their culture, both as Zambians and also as members of CMML churches. There seemed to be good responses and it is so encouraging to see so many people taking notes as the Word is opened. I would say that the smaller leadership conferences are much more strategic and beneficial, however this was a wonderful opportunity to proclaim God’s truth and also encourage the work of Samfya Bible School.

Gwen & I are now in full swing to prepare for the arrival of the EMI team next week. Gwen will co-ordinate the food and we need to make a supply trip to Mansa. Thanks for your ongoing prayers, we are all in good health and enjoying the blessings of the Lord in this place.

We are home

Hi there everyone,
It is now Monday night. We are back in Samfya and had a safe journey home! Gosh the entry into Lusaka was a bit difficult, but Donald did us all proud with no incidences – thank goodness. There were cars going everywhere, overtaking where they shouldn’t and having to push their way in. At one point Donald even pulled right over as the car overtaking cars in front of us almost had a head on collision! It really was rather scary! Also it is really hard to see people walking on the roads (and there are many), not only because their skin is so dark but also because is no road lighting or markings! Makes for very hard driving.

On the way we saw a bus that was in a ditch on the side of the road. It looks like the driver might have fallen asleep! There aren’t so many pot holes anymore on this part of the journey which is nice but there are still a few.
This morning we headed off to Lusaka Bible Society and picked up 11 boxes of Bemba Bibles which had 24 bibles in each box, and said our Goodbyes to Paul, Janet and Lily. Thankfully we were coming home with only the three of us with only one hand luggage bag so there was plenty of room. Katie at one point even stretched out and went to sleep in the back! The Atkinson’s will fly out tomorrow for home! It was really nice to have them here and sharing our home.

The Bibles are loaded in the car and Donald gets a phone call from our elders. So he stands outside the Bible Society as that is where he can hear the best (even then it was really hard). Katie and I wait in the car. Walking past was a man pulling a cart with what looked like a pie warmer on it and in it were some sausage rolls and pie looking items. I decide that I would like a photo but by the time I get the camera out and ready he had gone. Well this lady who was going past started yelling at me and asked me why I had taken a photo of her! I told her that I hadn’t then she was even more offended and said why didn’t you take a photo. I told her that I didn’t want a photo of her and motioned with my hands for her to go away. She kept yelling at me and (naughty me) said what a stupid woman! A man (who wasn’t even with her) asked me why I was picking a fight with that woman. I told him she was picking a fight with me and so he kept walking. What a lovely start to the day!

Well true to form so far for Donald in Africa he was pulled over by the traffic police AGAIN! This time however we had had some warning and Donald was making sure he was doing just under 100kms! They pulled us over, shook Donald hand and mine then tried to tell Donald that he was doing 112kms. He told them no he wasn’,t so the police officer said oh well I will only give you the minimum fine. Donald just looked at him and I said but he wasn’t doing that speed! He ended up just saying oh well just go – so we did. I think he thought we would just pay him – maybe he didn’t realise we were locals hahahahaha

We went through so many police stops today which really was a nuisance! At one of the stops the police officer asked where we were going and where had we come from. Then he waved to another guy and he came over. I thought oh what is he going to say now! He was actually an immigration officer and checked our Nationals cards and Donald’s work visa looked inside the car and waved us on. We think they were looking for illegal people as there are many and it was on the road that goes to Tanzania!

We get to the place where the bus was and took a photo. Donald looks across the other side of the road and some men who were sitting there we holding their hand out wanting money for us taking a photo! Donald just said you have got to be kidding to them and we left. They were just after a quick dollar!!

At the Serenji Junction we picked up a hitchhiker! She was a 24 year old American girl. She is with the peace corps here. There are so many of these people here. We dropped her off at the Samfya turnoff and she caught a taxi back to her village.

We got back to Samfya and Donald pulls into Peter’s house to find out when they (Donald, Peter and Francis) were leaving to go to the Mambelema conference only to find out that their accommodation has been paid for from tonight! So home we come, he packs his bag, while I made him something for dinner and he has gone. He will be back on Wednesday or maybe Thursday. He is teaching at 8:00am in the morning but wasn’t sure about when the next session was!
Donald had a tummy bug last week – I am sure it was because he had been doing so much. He also hadn’t had a good nights sleep for a while as for some reason

Copper had decided that he needed a toilet stop in the middle of the night. Thankfully he isn’t doing that anymore! I hope Donald will some time to rest before he goes to pick up the EMI Team. The arrive on 2nd of Semptember, So Donald has to drive to Lusaka again! It will be pretty full on until they leave and then he will have to take them down again, drive back and a few days later we leave!

It looks like I will be organising the catering for the team so while Donald is away will put together a menu and then we will be going to Mansa (probably on Monday) to get the supplies from Shoprite, then I will start baking for them for time they are here. Ummm looks like another busy time for us!

This week Katie will be trying to finish all her schoolwork. She will also have to do her job at SCCP. The American girls are leaving there this week so that means Katie’s job will also be finished!

Oh I don’t know if I told you but we met the Fullers the other day and went to their home for dinner which was a nice treat. We got to know them a little bit as well and hopefully they can come to our place before we leave.

Just after Donald left tonight the power went off and it is now 7:30 and it is still off. I hope it comes on soon. This is probably the part that gets to me the most – not having power as when it is dark there isn’t much to do when the power is off.

Well I had better stop moaning and go and tuck Katie in.
Good night everyone
Gwen