News from Africa

Below is another letter from Greg and Lisa, they are helping with an orphanage in Kenya.

"Dear Family and Friends, ((this is from THe first of April Trying to send again)
Another day, another adventure! School started at 9:00, with a short game for the early birds (on time).We have tried to find games that a. don’t cost money b. don’t require any supplies we don’t have HAHA c. doesn’t cause the kids to roll in the dirt, or get sweaty d. don’t require them to “line up”. (Lines seem to be an impossible concept.) So this morning we played “Button button, who has the button?” I secretly slipped it into one child’s hand and they all tried to guess who, then we took turns- they LOVED it. They want to play again! They also like racing by passing objects on spoons. Last week we raced with beans. As the beans fell off the spoons, everyone “helped” put the beans back on-Our side Your side-it didn’t matter. The 2 lines blurred into a blob as the beans made it to the end. Everyone cheered the beans journey, never did get the concept that they were on 2 teams. All were happy, so that is what matters.
Last Sunday we had visitors. About 30 children and youth from a neighboring church came with special music and dancing. Then our children sang and danced for them. Then the lesson, then juice and cookies. (they are called biscuits here). Everyone had a great time, they participate really well with question and answer time, so we know they are listening and understanding the lesson. We counted between 130-150 children last week.
We were to begin at 10:00; we got rolling about 10:45. Today was special, we were absolutely packed. They mostly sit on low wooden benches. Today they were 5-6 on a bench, average of 3 nursing babies per bench. The benches were so close together that the person seated in back of you had their knees in your bum, and your knees were in the bum in front. Good thing they spend a lot of time standing and singing and dancing! The plastic lawn chairs were brought in and added to the end of the rows. About 5 rows up from the back they switched the chairs from the right side to the left side.(no I don’t know why) So as we walked up to give, and walked back to our seats (simultaneously)there was a big jam up at the crossing place. We are beginning to observe without being too surprised. I had the luxury of a plastic chair today. I like to sit on the benches with the other women, but there was NO room. Then the children’s choir came in adding 31 more people. I guestimated about 150 in the building, at least 50-75 standing at the windows outside. Next a baby dedication, with vows from the parents like a marriage, very solemn and serious. Then fundraising for the upcoming trip. First the call for all to contribute (almost a game show atmosphere) as the members brought up donations (amount announced publicly!) to put in the basket. Then the most fun started. The members had brought items to be “auctioned”. They had coconuts, bananas, and a chicken! I was catching enough words to figure out the prices. 20 shillings for the coconuts (1.00US =78 KS)I think the bananas went for 65 shillings (KS) Then the chicken- Harrison said in English “OK, I am coming with the basket and I am not stopping until I have come to all of the pockets!” Then he said “We are giving the chicken as a gift to Lennox(the dedicated baby) to start him off, the chicken will give and give, and the child will be cared for!” Everyone was clapping. Then he came with the basket and collected change. They exceeded the goal of 5,000 shillings by 2,000! All during the fundraising the 1980’s style keyboard was playing in the background. The music was presets I am guessing, old classics, show tunes, carousel music, some old 1970 detective show themes. Little snippets of all kinds of music I recognized. It must have been 100 degrees, with Swahili mixed with English, time warp music, people laughing and cheering, It was fun, but I was feeling really bizarre! Our trip is this Wed through Sunday, about 20 miles away in bush country in an area called G********. . It is in the middle of G****** (tribe) A country with a lot of alcohol problems. Crusades (like an old fashioned tent meeting) are very well received. We have a generator, TV and “The Movie” in Swahili. So pray for us and I will tell you all about it when it’s over. I do know we have a school building to sleep in with toilets and good water. Elvis and Andersons people are also going. We are not sure what to expect, everyone here is really looking forward to the trip.
This week has been the week of injuries. (Not us) First Isaac (kitchen help, about 18 years)cut into his shin with a panga (smaller than a machete). He was in the shamba cutting weeds to prepare for planting. Then Nixon (maybe 8 years) cut into his left middle finger with a panga. Almost took the end of it. He was cutting (whacking) coconuts open. Nixon is Pst Andersons brother Issa’s son. Then Fredrick came in one morning and said “Lisa, can you come with me to see about a woman who has fallen and injured her arm ? They say it is just like this” (visualize an arm at a strange angle) I am thinking fracture. She was across the family yard in a hut with no mud (frame and roof, and window openings) I haven’t quite figured out why they divide a hut into rooms with a framed wall when there is no “wall” I walked in behind Fred, and cracked my head on the door frame! It is at about 5’5 and I am 5’7. Fortunately I was not moving fast. She was on a cot (their version of a bed). Fred spoke to her in Swahili, then turned to me and said, “Alright, she is a drunkard, and she was walking like this(demonstrate a stagger)and she just fell on her arm, so we need to look at it, then you need to come back and talk to her about it.” So we iced it (it was muscle not bone) I gave her an Ibuprofen, and she slept it off. (she is some relative)Then later another family member was working on her with deep heat massage. She was really shaking, and I don’t think it was all the arm. So I need to go talk to her. Then yesterday Shauri (Boy about 8) came with a nasty looking finger, said it was a boil. Doctored and bandaged. I think we are the only ones with band-aids and antibiotic ointment. (John and Sandy were really disappointed when they opened their new first aid kit and it was mostly band-aids. It looks like that is what we have a great need for-imagine that!)They all keep coming back to have it redressed. Nothing really tragic, I am sure that is coming. Fredrick said everyone knows to come to him for help. He asked me last week “Have you delivered babies?” I posed the same question to Greg HaHa! I got just the reaction I wanted! He better get ready! Something really comical happened with all of this band-aid stuff. We were called out on the porch one evening after dinner by Isaac. He had a friend who “needed” a plaster. (band-aid).There was a group of very hopeful teenage boys standing around, and one brave one showed us his “injury”. Greg says “THAT!!!!!” It might have been a slight scratch 3 days ago! Greg was beginning to gear up for a version of “Man Up! You don’t get a band/aid for ……..” about that time he got a wifely elbow in the side-he is getting good at responding quickly to the message. I said very quietly, “They are just boys who want a cool looking band-aid like Isaac. Remember how little kids love band-aids?” Well these were really big kids (16-18) but they really wanted that great looking band-aid. So Mr. Greg simmered down and explained how we will have to save them for bad cuts like Isaac’s leg. They were pretty disappointed!
Monday morn.
Yesterday was Greg’s birthday, we had a family dinner with all 9 children to celebrate. It was eagerly anticipated all day with the children whispering about “Mr. Greg’s Birthday.” (pronounced Gregie, don’t forget to really roll the r!)They sang in Swahili and English. Franklin prepared a mango “pie”. The crust was like very thin short bread. It was in a casserole dish to serve all. The closest thing I could find to peaches, quite tasty!
Well I just reread this letter, some of the grammar could be better! I’ve had several little beginning readers with me, all practicing on a different page. Some in English, some in Swahili. They are very quick learners, I enjoy having them, and they like to practice on us. (My concentration is suffering HAHA)The two little girls who were so afraid of us are now shaking our hands to say “Jambo” and can at least be in our presence without screaming in terror.
Watch for our newsletter in the next few days for some FANTASTIC news about the orphans! We love to hear news from home (please no forwards or attachments! Thanks). Email us if you get a minute! strausz@fbcho.com
Tues morn.
We are well and healthy, really getting attached to the children, seeing growth in all the areas of our work and learning from our mistakes!
Please pray that we learn Swahili quickly so we can better communicate with the people here. Fredrick is a wonderful teacher, it feels like my progress is slow, but this week I realized how many words I was picking up, and how many songs I can sing with. I have several individual words, and can tell the children to “back up!” HA !Remembering to roll my r’s takes concentration.
This is going out this morning! Still no rain.
Love to all of you, Greg and Lisa"

The Right Mindset

Leviticus 10

The Death of Nadab and Abihu

1 Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, contrary to his command. 2 So fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD. 3 Moses then said to Aaron, "This is what the LORD spoke of when he said: " 'Among those who approach me I will show myself holy; in the sight of all the people I will be honored.' " Aaron remained silent.4 Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Aaron's uncle Uzziel, and said to them, "Come here; carry your cousins outside the camp, away from the front of the sanctuary." 5 So they came and carried them, still in their tunics, outside the camp, as Moses ordered.6 Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, "Do not let your hair become unkempt, [a] and do not tear your clothes, or you will die and the LORD will be angry with the whole community. But your relatives, all the house of Israel, may mourn for those the LORD has destroyed by fire. 7 Do not leave the entrance to the Tent of Meeting or you will die, because the LORD's anointing oil is on you." So they did as Moses said.16 When Moses inquired about the goat of the sin offering and found that it had been burned up, he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's remaining sons, and asked, 17 "Why didn't you eat the sin offering in the sanctuary area? It is most holy; it was given to you to take away the guilt of the community by making atonement for them before the LORD. 18 Since its blood was not taken into the Holy Place, you should have eaten the goat in the sanctuary area, as I commanded."19 Aaron replied to Moses, "Today they sacrificed their sin offering and their burnt offering before the LORD, but such things as this have happened to me. Would the LORD have been pleased if I had eaten the sin offering today?" 20 When Moses heard this, he was satisfied.

It is important to be in the right mindset before we worship God. Before I read anything in the Bible for my quiet time I pray that God will show me what I need to read that day. I pray that I will get wisdom and knowledge and understanding. Do I do that for God’s benefit? No. I do it to prepare my heart, to soften it, so that I am ready to hear what He is saying. He will show me what He wants to whether I ask him or not. The problem is with me. I may not always be willing to hear what He is saying. That is what Aaron is saying here.

Aaron’s sons got lazy. And I may have been able to understand it if they had been doing this awhile and were getting tired of it. We see people get burnt out everyday and do something foolish. But this was right at the beginning. They were told what coals to use to burn the incense, but for whatever reason chose not to. Why would they do that? I don’t know. They had to know there would be some consequence. They were supposed to be the examples for the rest of the Israelites. They were supposed to be above the standard. They were supposed to be what others aspired to. Instead they couldn’t even do a simple task. How disrespectful was that to God? It was the same as if they had spit in His face. That is where His presence was and they used what they weren’t supposed to. They are lucky He only killed them and not the rest of their family. As priests they were responsible for more than themselves. They were responsible for the people of Israel. And by acting as they did they could have really messed them up.

Some people say, “Did God really have to kill them?” Yes. If He didn’t it would show that you didn’t have to do what God said, that you didn’t have to be reverent when you worshipped Him. Aaron got the message. That is why he didn’t eat the offering. He was mad that his sons had been killed and he knew his attitude wasn’t right to worship God. It was actually more reverent for him not to eat the offering. It showed respect for God.How many times do we go to church with the wrong attitude? I have to go so I’ll go, but don’t expect me to be happy about it. For a long time I looked at church kind of like an AA meeting. It was for people who couldn’t be good on their own. As such I resented having to go. I am a good person, I thought. I don’t need to be around sinners. What if I do bad by because I have been around them. Thankfully I have learned that is not the case. Or maybe it is. Just not the way I thought about it. Church is like AA. It is full of sinners. But I am one of them. Being around other Christians won’t help me make bad decisions. It will help me make good decisions. It is like AA because all humans are addicted to sin. We are addicted to it straight from the womb. It is our nature. Just like an alcoholic likes to drink, all humans like to sin. It feels good to sin, at least at first. We need to be around others that will support us and in turn we can support so that we don’t take that drink of sin.

Wasn’t I doing the same thing Aaron’s sons were? I was coming to church to worship with the wrong fire in my incense. I was coming with the wrong attitude. It definitely hurt my relationship with God. It probably hurt Amanda’s relationship with God. It probably hurt the boys’ relationship with God. Aaron, although mad at God for killing his sons, knew that God was God, and that what He had done was right. He was angry at Him but still recognized the need to be respectful. That is why he didn’t eat the offering. It would be better not to worship than to do it with the wrong attitude. He knew he would just be going through the motions and that God wouldn’t accept that. I need to apply that to my life. If I don’t have the right attitude, then one of two things need to happen. Either I get the right attitude, either through prayer or talking or whatever, or I don’t go worship. There have been many time I have thought, I’m not singing that, I don’t like that song. I’m not doing that, I don’t like that. That is entirely the wrong attitude to have. If it is worship I need to put my whole heart into it and do it completely, the right way, no strange fire, no eating when I don’t feel like it, no just going through the motions. Worship, as God wants me to, with the right attitude. There are times when Amanda and I pray at night that I feel like the Holy Spirit says that we should kneel as we are praying. I do it. To not would be the same as Aaron’s sons.

I always focused more on actions than attitude. I have a personality type that stresses actions over intent. As long as the job gets done who cares how the person felt about doing it. But we show God our love by worshipping Him. It is hard to show your love if your attitude isn’t right. How can I go to God with an attitude that is less than reverent, less than completely worshipful, less than everything that is good in me? I can’t.

Drason