Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Thoughts on being back


*We have been back in Mozambique for two weeks and 3 days.  The first week I spent trying to wake up!  The second week we hosted our friends the Snider family while they are in transit, waiting to move north to Nampula.  This week I am trying to figure out what "normal" life and a schedule is going to look like for me this year. 

*With my kids in school I do have more "free" time.  (I guess I should call it kid-less time.) I'm starting the youth group back this Wednesday that I lead at my kid's school for 7-12th graders, so I'll be preparing a devotional for that each week.  And I'm leading chapel at their school on Fridays again.  That just involves picking out three songs, making sure I have overheads for them, picking out a scripture then leading all of that on Friday mornings.  Oh, and I have to find a speaker each week.  That can be sort of a pain.  Anyone free this Friday morning at 7:30 a.m.?

*I attended a ladies meeting at our church on Saturday.  It was a good time of fellowship but it was also a reminder to me of how much more I need to get out of my house and talk to people to improve my language skills and to get to know those in my community.

*This week I've been keeping baby Abigail, the daughter of our new colleagues Chris and Katie Nalls.  Chris and Katie started their Portuguese refresher course (both were two year missionaries here in Mozambique a few years ago) and hadn't been able to find a babysitter so I have had the privilege of watching Abigail for two days.  They have found a babysitter now who starts tomorrow.  Abigail is a little sweetie and we are so excited about Chris and Katie being in Mozambique.  

*I experienced a Welcome-Back-to-Mozambique experience on Saturday.  I got stopped by the police during a random police stop for not having a front license plate. (It had fallen off last week and I just had it laying on the front dashboard.)  I normally pray that my car will be invisible when I have to drive through those police stops, but I was not so fortunate on this day.  Fortunately Katie was with me and her Portuguese is way better than mine.  The policeman even said at one point he would not talk to me but to Katie because her Portuguese was better.  He started to write me a fine (which I was happy to pay) but since I had no money with me he wanted to hold my drivers license as a "deposit" while I went to Katie's house to get money.  But when I asked him how much the fine would be he asked, "how much do you have?"  This let me know that my "fine" would just pad his pocket.  After insisting that he would have to write me a receipt he finally got tired of dealing with me, gave me my license back and said "go!"  I was a bit frazzled after that.  

*After the discouragement of the weekend language difficulties and dealing with unethical police I was in need of some encouragement.  I asked the Lord for that as I went to bed Saturday night.  At that moment my eyes fell on an old issue of Women of the Harvest magazine which is published  to offer insights, encouragement and information to international missionary women.  I picked it up and turned to the second article.  It was just a basic outline of how we are to live our lives as missionaries in a difficult place.  It addressed some of the very issues I had struggled with this past week.  Then Sunday night at the English praise and worship time that we attend, the dvd series that we watched  was about how God does not want our rituals and sacrifices but He wants our hearts.  Both of those things ministered volumes to my heart and I'm so thankful to God for once again meeting my needs.  

Anyone want to share how God has met their needs this past week?


4 comments:

Kimberly said...

Dear Angie,
I saw your inquiry to Beth on her blog and was curious. I read your profile and knew I just had to write you. I lived in Mozambique back in 2000-2001 with Iris Ministries in Maputo. Mozambique is so close to my heart! I would love to hear from you and hear how I can specifically be praying for you. I was able to return to Mozambique a few years ago and was privilaged enough to see several of the kids that had come off of the streets while I was there doing well at the orphanage. Are you close to Maputo? or are you up north. My e-mail address is Kimbe1115@msn.com Would LOVE to hear siesta! ( c :

Linds said...

Re-entry is challenging, isn't it???
God is trying to talk to me, and I am having some trouble hearign what He is saying right now. I do know that I need to say yes to whatever it is. So I am just saying yes. And waiting to see. I will let you knw when I find out!

Anonymous said...

Hello, Angie, I am friends (Stateside, of course) with the Sniders as well, how uncanny! I stumbled on your website while looking to see if their's was updated. What a small world. Thanks for ministering in Mozambique.

Janna Northrup

Dee Dee said...

Katie and Chris are some of the first "Mozambique people" we met. We met them in New Orleans at our very first interview. That's actually how we found out about your blog - Katie spent about an hour or so telling us all about Moz and giving us blog addresses. (I may have already told you all this - I forget.) Anyway, please tell them "hi" for us.