being of a new culture...

Above all, you must live 

as citizens of heaven, 

conducting yourselves in a manner

worthy of the Good News about Chr:st.

Phil 1:27 

THE BIG HOLIDAY.

          The month of October marked the big holiday celebration for our M-slim neighbors.  While very different in its roots, this holiday is comparable to our Chr:stmas in excitement, gifts and family get-togethers.  Every M family buys a live sheep to slaughter on the morning of the festival to remember the sacrifice of the sheep that was provided to Abraham in place of his son. (Though they believe it was Ishmael)

          We were invited over for lunch at Mia's house on Sun-day after the holiday and we sat and visited for several hours.  While joanna was upstairs with Mia, helping bring down dessert, she was able to share a little with mia about the story in the B:ble and how it directly correlates to the sacrifice J made for us, in our place, with His perfect blood.  Mia was not receptive- responding with "for you, it was J. For us, it was someone else who died on the cross." 

          Joanna was able to bring to Mia's attention, for the first time, that the B:ble is older than her culture's book and that these TRUE stories are from the B:ble.  She was shocked by this, as was her husband, Sid.  This sparked a very small amount of sp:r:dual conversation with them before Mia changed the subject, stating that "we are all the same."

SACRIFICE

          Thinking on the sacrifice Abraham was wiling to give but was, out of Dad's grace, relieved of.... thinking of the incredible sacrifice Dad did not withhold from us, even when it was His only, perfect Son that shed His blood... makes the sacrifices we have made over these last 7 months appear what they truly are: nothing.  It is a privilege, as Paul wrote in Phil. 1:29, to suffer for Him.  While we continue to miss our home country, culture, language, family and friends, we are thankful that He has brought us out of our comfortable lives in America to serve HIm here.  We are forced to think through things we would have never given a second though to in America.  Even things like Halloween- for us, used to be just a silly tradition of dressing up and asking for candy.  With the heavy influence of w:tch-craft here, we have had to re-evaluate the roots of the holiday and make a decision that we will no longer celebrate anything that has roots in celebrating evil... not matter how innocent our past traditions may have been.  

Precious babies!!

Self-portrait at our first M-wedding!

CELEBRATIONS AND REQUESTS:

• Joseph has conitnued to show interest and is growing in his fa:th!  Even while living across the border in a bother country, he continues to share with his family and friends about the Truth.

• We have had opportunities to share the Truth not only with Delia and Nessa, but also again with Mia.  Please keep asking that Dad would soften their hearts.

• Andrew's dad, Phil, had his back surgery and is doing well! Whoohoo!

• G has had much better sleep these last few weeks. Thank you so much for  covering us and our little ones with your pr@yers.  We can definitely feel them, even from 6,000 miles away!

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• Please continue to lift up our new, young brother, Joseph.  Please ask that he would continue to be excited to tell others about the Truth!

• If you will lift us up for our physical health- we have all struggled this past month with sickness.

• Please ask for opportunities, wisdom and words from Dad about eplainig to Mia that we are not all the same.  While we want to maintain friendship with her and her family, we want our purpose here to be clear- and we do not want to have a friendship based on tolerance.

• Please lift us up- that we will continue to seek Dad's face in all things, especially when our past culture conflicts with the culture in our new city.  We want to be of Dad's culture- and nothing else.

Living for Him,

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