Be on the Mission Field without Leaving the comforts of Home!

For all of you people who would love to do mission work in some foreign country but you can't afford it or if the time is just not right for you because of family or work, try FRIENDS SPEAK. With Friends Speak the foreign mission field comes to you. Because of the readers that I have been matched up with over the last couple of years I have experienced, China a couple of times, Mexico and now Korea and without leaving the comforts of my own home. My current reader is a fellow from Korea (Larry Kim) who is 34 years old and is married with a wife and 3 children back in Korea. What a sacrifice! He is an amazing guy who really wants to learn English and is very open to share his life and friendship with me. It is so much fun. His hobby is foot massage which I am very soon going to give him the opportunity to demonstrate his skills on me. Please consider Friends Speak, you can travel the world and never leave the farm. Another benefit is, when you are finally ready to leave the farm and travel the world (for real) you will have places to go and people to visit all over the world. The very, very, very best part of Friends Speak is that you are sharing Jesus with your new found friends. Friends Speak - what a great opportunity!

The Effects of Africa!

Even though after 2 weeks I am still trying to recover from the effects of the time difference between Africa and Canada (still waking up at 4 AM), there are some things that I don't think I will ever recover from (or even want to recover from).

The people of Zambia that we met are amazing and have touched me and my family in so many ways. I would like to share some of the highlights of my trip.

For years now our family has sponsored children from other countries. We have had their pictures on our fridges and have read their letters and have prayed for them. Within the last year and a half we started sponsoring a little girl (Feby Muleya) from a village outside of the city of Kalomo Zambia (through Zambia Mission Fund Canada). One of the highlights of our recent trip was spending a part of an afternoon with Feby and her extended family. She is an orphan and as far as we know has one brother and lives with someone she calls aunty. Her home is a very simple clay hut with no real windows and a sheet hanging across the doorway. However, she is happy, and just beamed with joy as we shared some gifts with her and her extended family. What a joy, to share with Feby and her family! I will never forget that afternoon.

Our family also sponsors a aids patient by the name Lemmy. He is a widower as his wife has died from aids and he has one daughter. Our sponsorship assists him by providing him with food and transportation so that he can get proper treatment for his sickness. He looks very good and is so, so appreciative for our help. Something else that I will never forget!

I look forward to seeing both Feby and Lemmy again at some point in the future!

The people of Zambia have taught me the priority and importance of prayer. In our country, when someone is not well the first place we turn is to the medicene cabinet or the phone to call the Doctor or if it is an emergency we call 911. Later on, when things are taken care of or under control we may then turn to God. In Zambia, they first turn to God (the great healer, the great physisian). They really don't have a choice. They have to turn to God. I love our country and our society, but everything we have seems to get in our way (that is, comes between us and God). In our country people do not need to turn to God because they can take care of things by themselves. What is a blessing unfortunately has turned out to be a curse, that gets between us and God. Being in Zambia and experiencing their faith and readiness to go to God in any situation has certainly changed me and my thinking. Thank you Zambians!

While walking past a very small classroom at the community school of Katungu, I heard the class singing praises to God. I stepped into the doorway to see a classroom full of about 80 grade two students just packed in, with no teacher and them singing praise at the top of their lungs. A scene that I would never, ever see anywhere in North America. Amazing! Especially the no teacher part.

Another, aids sponsored patient by the name of Kelvin (who recently suffered from a stroke - aids related and now unable to walk on his own) being brought 30 plus kilometers on a bike with flat tires and bent wheels across country by his brother, brother in law, mother and sister (with baby) to the gathering of aids sponsored patients just to meet the Canadian sponsors. They had to leave at 4 in the morning to arrive on time. Unbelievable!!! Just to meet some Canadian people (that included me). I was so moved by their commitment and dedication! WOW!

I could go on and on and on with other experiences but I will stop here and maybe share other experiences on a later blog.

It is good to get back and I thank God for blessing my family with this opportunity! Thank you God!

One Tough Week!

I think that most people know this already, but last monday night my dad passed away. He was 84 years of age and was in a seniors care home at the time. Since I am the closest sibling geographically and also his power of attorney I was the first to be informed of his condition. Unfortunately I happened to be in Calgary for work on monday night when I found out. I got the news shortly after midnight on last monday nite. I got maybe one hour of sleep that night. Since that time it has certainly been a roller coaster ride, emotionally. I was very close to my father so this has been very had. I have found that it doesn't really matter how much you try to prepare mentally and spiritually for this to come, it is still very difficult and so mentally draining. However, death is just a part of life, and everyone has to deal with it and face it, so that is what I am doing, dealing with it.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who either called or emailed, or sent a card, and most importantly voiced a prayer to God on my or my family's behalf. This has most certainly given me the strength to deal with this difficult situation much more easily. Thank you! Please continue to pray for my mother as she has alzheimers and sometimes doesn't remember and/or understand what is going on. Please pray for her!

Join Us In Prayer

The next two weeks are so very vital to the future of our church at Glen Elm. Our search for a new senior minister has come down to just two final candidates. Before a final decision is made we have decided to take it to God over the next two weeks. So, if you feel the call to do so, please join us in prayer, asking God for direction, for clarity, for insight and for wisdom in choosing the one candidate that would be best suited for our congregation.

I am not sure what God has planned for us but whatever it is, I am sure it is going to be amazing. Beyond whatever we could have ever believed or imagined. After all that has happened over the last couple of years, I am so looking forward to what he has in store for us in the future.

Please join us in prayer.

It has been a good week!

On weekend with homecoming at WCC, it was fairly busy. Very late hockey game on Friday nite, 10:00 to 12:15. WCC alumni against current WCC team. I am not alumni, however I played with them. Of course age, smarts and passing came thru again with alumni winning all 3 games (games up to 5). Sat morn had a LST Canada meeting, 10:00 to 12:30. Spent evening at WCC, banquet and evening program.
Sunday worship was at WCC, not nearly as good as it should have been, however, any worship is good. Highlight was monday nite, where Rich K and myself started our visiting of our congregation. Elders have decided to visit all members of our congregation over the next few months. We visited Wilf and Eloise Smith and Ruth Robinson. Ruth is one incredible lady. So positive. This makes be an elder such a blessing. I think this is something that will really bring our church together. Last night I was at a transition committee meeting where we interviewed the final two candidates for our new senior minister job. Now we need to prayer to God for wisdom, for direction and clarity. Tonite Rich and myself visit a couple of more families in our congregation. Tomorrow I take off to go visit my parents in Ituna, and then off for weekend. I am so looking forward to it. God has certainly blessed me with a great week.

Thoughts by Eddie. Every now and then I will post my thoughts! Feel free to comment!