Good News and Prayer

    Created by a loving God and made in His image.  Known by Him before the creation of the world.  Loved by Him as we are, even when we were His enemies.   God is a loving God!!!  How could God possibly demonstrate this in a way any more dramatic than sending Jesus to us?  

But take just a minute to imagine that God wasn’t so loving.  I wouldn’t ponder that thought for too long (the implications are immensely depressing), but maybe we should think about it long enough to put ourselves in the shoes of so many people around the world.  If they don’t know Jesus, they can only imagine what God must be like.  How can the miseries of life be explained except by God’s anger?  And how can that anger be appeased?

Maybe someone has told them what God is like but didn’t describe Him in the way that God describes Himself.  Maybe they have been told that God can be appeased, by human effort of one form or another.  And maybe they will spend their lives trying to appease Him.

How amazing blessed we are!  First, God is love (1 John 4:8).  He has chosen to be a loving God.                None of us could do anything to change Him if He was anything else - so we praise Him that He is a God of love.  Second, someone(s) in our life told us the truth about Him - that He is a loving God. {If no one has told you that before, I am telling you now and would be very excited to tell you more!}  Praise God for whomever that person is (and maybe tell them “Thanks”, too).  We know the truth about God and it is good news!

My prayer tonight is that we will not take this blessing for granted.  It is easy to forget that our abundant access to the truth is not a universal reality.  So many people haven’t heard and aren’t hearing about who God really is.  Please pray that God will use you to tell them.

A short and exciting and easy-to-read book about how God continues to spread the Good News  in amazing ways is: 

                   Glory in Mongolia (by Rick Leatherwood)

And if you really want to learn more about God’s dedication to the whole world hearing about Him, check out a class called:

                   Perspectives on the World Christian Movement ( aka “Perspectives”) at 

                    perspectives.org

We said that we would list specific prayer requests so that you will know better how to pray for us.  Here goes:

1. A growing relationship with God - the better we know Him, the better we can share Him with others
2. Strength in the face of challenges and trials (miscarriage, physical illness)
3. Opportunities to relate to others in deeper spiritual ways, in spite of a language barrier (we are working on learning Hausa)
4. Time in prayer - for the needs here and for you at home!
5. That others will faithfully pray for us (we are counting on you!)
6. For the many mothers whose children die so young

If you want to read a bit more about praying for missionaries, check out Heartland Community Church’s February Newsletter at:   

 http://www.heartlandpca.org/newsletters/hcc_february_2012.pdf

Grace and Peace in Christ,

Dean, Dianna, and Gracie

Picnic Heights

Here are some pictures from our fun evening adventure and meal at "Picnic Heights," a spot just outside of town.

Making our way up to the flat rocky area where we gathered for our meal.

Our group picnic spot

Climbing

"Where's Gracie?"

Here are some great father-daughter pictures:

And...

Family Shot

We've enjoyed our nice relaxing Saturday--hopefully you have, too!

DD&G

Hospital Field Trip

Well, today was the day: Gracie's first visit to "Daddy work."  Dean has been wanting Dianna and Gracie to meet his translator (whose quickly becoming a friend) and have a look at what he spends the day doing.

Gracie gladly received this balloon (made from exam glove) and enjoyed playing with her daddy.

Gracie is adjusting very well to her new environment, even the hospital surroundings didn't seem to phase her.  She looks around and usually (she does have her shy moments) greets everyone she sees.  We are impressed with her expanding vocabulary:

"Sanu"  Hausa for hello

"Lafiya"  Hausa response to hello and many other greetings

"Bonjour, ca va"  French hello (good day), how are you?

It's interesting to observe when she choses which words to say.  Lately if she sees any African, she will either say "Sanu" or "Bonjour, 'ta' va" -- or both.  The gardeners and construction workers particularly find her greetings amusing.  We are very blessed with a personable, outgoing little girl!

Now, we must be honest; not every moment of the day is this cute.  We fear we are entering the "twos" a bit early.  The latest phrase which we cringe to hear is:

"I wan it.  I wan it.  I wan it."

It's not that we don't appreciate her indicating her desires; it's actually nice to know what she prefers.  However, the whiny tone and forced, tearless cry that accompanies these words gets old quickly.

[Deep breath in.  Hold.  Breath out.]

At the end of the day, we smile as we sing this sweet child to sleep.  She is such a joy to us, and we are so thankful that the Lord entrusted her to us.  The same lips that utter the phrases above are also learning to pr@y.  Instead of just folding her hands while we pr@y, we now encourage her to repeat a few sentences on her own.  How sweet the sound...

Today, we pulled out the felt board (Dianna's Christmas request) and learned about Daniel and the lions' den, as well as the fiery furnace.  

Gracie LOVED rearranging the pieces.  We will definitely enjoy using these felt B*ble stories while we are here and for years (and years) to come.

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More from the hospital

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The quick trip this morning merely whet Dianna's appetite for hospital time.  We were blessed with a volunteer to babysit Gracie this afternoon, so after the siesta break (1-3PM daily) Dianna headed back to the hospital with Dean.

Lady presenting with chief complaint of infertility and increasingly heavy bleeding...

found to have several large fibroids (benign [not cancer] tumors of the uterus).  These tumors were actually visible when she laid down for the ultrasound.  She opted for a trial of medical management but hysterectomy would be the definitive treatment if her bleeding worsens. 

Another patient who presented from prenatal clinic because they could not hear the baby's heartbeat.  Thankfully a quick look with the ultrasound showed an active little one with a healthy, beating heart.

Je$u$ film playing in waiting area, 

usually this area is packed full of patients and their family members.

Ladies sitting outside clinic waiting area

This little girl just finished her first lesson with crutches.

We don't know the story of her injury...but she was happy to have her picture taken 

(and to see it on the camera's display).

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With the second work week complete, we are ready for some relaxing time as a family and with our coworkers this weekend.

Grace & peace,

DD&G

Surprise visitors

Today after nap Gracie was in for a real treat.  While she was sleeping a small caravan of camels came onto the compound and took a rest in the side yard outside our house.

Dean was still home, too, so we all went to greet the camels.

With a little help Gracie was even able to give the camels a snack.

The caravan was actually a planned "camel ride" for some of the guests staying on the compound.  We didn't go along (maybe next time), but we enjoyed their visit.

Bye-bye camels

Well, today is Wednesday which to us means "market day."  Dean and Marc ventured out seeking fresh produce: garlic, carrots, oranges...unfortunately no bananas today.

Here's a better look at the market:

Vendors pack tightly into lean-to-type stalls set up for the day.

Bags filled with various spices.

We've learned it's polite to taste, not smell them, when discerning what each one is.

Here's an interesting shot showing the various local modes of transport.  

How many do you see?

Four

(By foot, bicycle, moto or camel)

Dean had hoped to catch a donkey cart and baby riding on his mother's back in this shot, too, which would have added two more very popular "ways to go."

We'll keep trying.

On the way from the hospital to the market, Dean actually passed the camel caravan in route.  

Can you spot them?

Camel caravan mid-right above.

And the aforementioned donkey cart as well as couple car/trucks.

Here is a look at local architecture along the way to <hur<h.

Now for a few pictures of Gracie at play...

Living on the edge

(and, yes, she was being supervised)

The above picture was taken at the construction site for the new duplex being built on the compound (it's adjacent to the playground so we visit there daily).  We, along with the Carrigans, are very blessed to be chosen as the first occupants for these lovely homes.  More pictures of the construction soon.

Gracie loves pushing her "baby doll" in the "stol-ler," a very thoughtful loaner from a family here.

"Painting with water" has been a hit the last couple of days.  

Dianna finds this to be a great way to keep Gracie entertained while Dean's at work and there are house chores to be done, such as meal prep or cooking.  

What's the latest from the kitchen?

Fresh Baked Bread!

We appreciate emails and messages with condolences from our family and friends at home.  These past few days have been a mix of ups and downs, but God is faithful to His promise to give us grace sufficient for each day.  A song which has really resonated with us today is "Faith to be Strong" (from album Carried Along) by Andrew Peterson:

Give us faith to be strong 

Father, we are so weak 

Our bodies are fragile and weary 

And as we stagger and stumble 

To walk where you lead 

Give us faith to be strong 

CHORUS: 

Give us faith to be strong 

Give us strength to be faithful 

'Cause life is not long but it's hard 

Give us grace to go on 

Make us willing and able 

Lord, give us faith to be strong 

Give us peace when we're torn 

Mend us up when we break 

This flesh can be wounded and shaky 

When there's much too much travel 

For one heart to take 

Give us peace when we're torn 

CHORUS 

Give us hearts to find hope 

Father, we cannot see 

How the sorrow we feel can bring freedom 

And as hard we try 

Lord it's hard to believe 

So give us hearts to find hope 

CHORUS 

Give us peace when we're torn 

Give us faith, faith to be strong

Again, thank you for your prayers and support.  We dare not do this alone, and we are thankful that we never do for He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Strong in Him,

DD&G

Celebrating Life

In light of our recent loss, we are taking time today to celebrate life.  Sharing pictures of Gracie experiencing life at Galmi seems like a great way to share some of our life's joy with you.

Gracie has made friends with the other children living on the compound.

Here she is getting a wagon ride.

Hanging out with new friends.

This is the duplex where we are currently living.

Free rides.

And for all the moms out there, no, Gracie did not get a turn.

We are very blessed to have a playground on the compound.  This is a daily event for us and the Carrigans (at least for Dianna, Stephanie and the kids that is).

Gracie loves the see saw.

To prevent injury we encourage her to tag-team with another older person.

Kids are creative with use of the equipment (as you can see above).

"Up peas"

To her dismay her two little feet stayed on the ground.

Spinning with someone more her size.

Eli takes a turn spinning the girls.

These baby swings are also a popular spot.

Even when we are in the house, Gracie finds new ways to play...

like Peek-A-Boo!

So as you can tell, Gracie is enjoying life here, and we are so thankful for the joy she brings!

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The latest news from the kitchen:

BAGELS!!

Who knew this tasty treat could be so easy?

The recipe came from The Wycliffe International Cookbook.  

A special thanks to the Birkys for giving us this essential before we left.  

First step is a basic dough (yeast, sugar, salt, water and flour) that rises for 40 minutes.  

Next divide the dough into 12 pieces, shape into balls and poke hole using thumb.

A variation can occur at this time.  

While rolling divided dough into to balls, we chose to knead in some extra ingredients.

Left: chili pepper and sharp cheddar cheese

Middle:  cinnamon, allspice and dried fruit bits

Right: plain

Let the bagels rest for 20 minutes.

Then place them in boiling water (with slight bit of oil).

Recipe was not clear on how long to boil the dough, we went with couple minutes on each side.

Final step is to let them bake for 15-20 min at 450 F.

None of our cookie sheets fit in our oven so we improvised by using an inverted cake pan.

Final product.

We enjoyed these for breakfast this morning.

This is definitely a recipe worth repeating!

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Oh, and for all who are wondering what the typical dress is for women,

here is the outfit Dianna wore to church this morning.

It is traditional for women to where top, skirt and head wrap (which can be fashioned in various ways, some ladies are quite creative) made from the same fabric.  Married women also wear a thin shawl over their shoulders (sometimes head, neck and shoulders).  

This outfit was borrowed from the STA (short term assignment) closet, a great idea to have folks leave things they won't use back in the states so others can use them here at Galmi.  We took our fabric to the tailor yesterday, so hopefully our outfits will be ready next week.

Thankful to He who gives Life,

DD&G

Knit Together, Not Hidden

Well, once again we share news with heavy hearts.  Last night we miscarried.  This came as a shock as we had not even known we were pregnant.  Some of you may recall a similar post from last September.  The loss of two children in such a short time period is hard and confusing.  Even though we do not understand why the Lord has given and taken away, we trust that He has a plan and a purpose.  Baby K3's life was short, we estimate 4-5 weeks, but as with Baby K2, this life is meaningful.  We share this news that you might pray for us and with us during this time.

Words from Psalm 139 comfort us once again.  We are all fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together in our mother's womb, not hidden from God in that secret place, but known by Him. We buried Baby K3 in a small cemetery accompanied by words from this psalm and a prayer coin.

We know that we are not alone in our circumstances and that others grieve similar losses and others even seemingly greater losses.  It is our desire that we be open and share with others that God might be glorified through our lives, as short or as long as they may be.

Due to our current distance from home, we have not been able to personally share this sad news with many of you (as we would have liked and preferred); please accept our apology for a general notification. Families here have been very encouraging and supportive of us, offering prayers and encouragement as well as acts of kindness and generosity (watching Gracie, making granola, sharing fresh produce, making dinner).  It is a blessing to receive the love of Christ's body, even on the other side of the world.

Leaning on Him,
DD&G