Growing Together

People often ask how we first learned about African Leadership Partners and their ministry at New Life Homes.

While attending college at Chico State University, I (Tommy) was sitting in a pew at Bidwell Presbyterian Church listening to Peter Kopp, one of the founders of African Leadership Partners, share how can God equips people with practical skills—such a medicine, agriculture, or construction—to help meet the world's greatest needs.

One of the BPC services meets at the El Rey theater.

Bidwell Presbyterian Church has developed a very cool partnership with African Leadership Partners. I began attending Bidwell Pres in 2004, just as it was experiencing awesome, God-led growth. Bidwell Pres is one of the fastest growing Presbyterian churches in America. The pastors and elders of the church are constantly looking for new ways to get members to become more intimately connected with the greatest needs of the world. I originally went to Swaziland as part of a short-term team from Bidwell Pres in 2006. The rest is history.

The partnership between Bidwell Pres and the folks in Swaziland has continued to grow. In 2010, the church raised money through a special offering to build a school. The school currently educates approximately 75 orphaned and vulnerable children, and is transforming education in the local community. One of the biggest needs New Life Homes is currently facing is housing for missionaries and school teachers. As a result of not enough housing, some missionaries and their families are traveling long distances on dangerous roads, where auto accidents are frequent.

The New Life School

The members of Bidwell Pres wanted to do something to further support the ministry of New Life Homes. This year, they dedicated their Christmas Eve offering to build two new homes on the farm. They raised $31,750! What a special Christmas gift to the children of New Life Homes and the local community.

God is so good and we are thankful for their generosity. We look forward to sending along pictures as construction progresses and eventually having short-term teams stay in the facilities. Bidwell Pres and New Life Homes have cultivated a unique and beautiful relationship that we look forward growing this relationship even more.

Here is a short promo video the folks at Bidwell Pres put together. Enjoy!

Pair of Ducks

We returned to Davis last night after spending approximately four weeks on the road, most of our time being spent at Mission Training International in Colorado. We are grateful for a challenging and engaging training and God's protection during several snow storms that we forged through during the drive home.

As 40 adults were learning upstairs in the training center, approximately 25 children were receiving similar training downstairs. Although most of our curriculum was different, there were some similarities built into the program. A pair of ducks is something we ALL learned about.

If you say "pair of ducks" fast enough, you'll hear something that sounds a lot more like "paradox." At our training, we learned that many of our experiences can be described by this word. In each "pair of ducks" there is a yay duck and a yuck duck.

In some ways, your heart will be saying "yay!" and it other ways it will be saying "yuck!"—often at the same time.

For example, we just purchased our tickets for the flight over. We leave January 12th. The yay duck in us is thrilled to finally begin this adventure, after much waiting and anticipation. The yay duck is so hopeful in this calling we're received, and we can't wait to see what the Lord will do in and through us. The yay duck says "Let's go!"

The yuck duck in us is experiencing great sorrow just thinking about the loved ones we'll leave behind. The yuck duck want to resist leaving our community in Davis, our careers, and some of our favorite hobbies. The yuck duck says "How can we possibly leave?"

As you can imagine, its a very emotional time for us. This week will bring many goodbyes. Thank you for praying and caring for us in the midst of the yays and the yucks.

Questioning Our Pickers

Most of the time, what seems like a bad idea usually turns out to be a bad idea. It tends to be the same with good ideas. However, there are those rare circumstances when, what seems like a good idea is actually, well, a bad idea. 

One week ago we left Davis and headed to Colorado Springs to attend a 3-week missions training with approximately 40 other missionaries preparing to enter the field (www.mti.org). On our second day of travel—in which we spent most of the ten hours on the road in the beautiful state of Wyoming—we were quickly approaching the Colorado State line and were getting very hungry.

 In search of some good home cookin’, we decided to stop at a local diner instead of hitting up another Subway. We picked the Luxury Diner (the irony will hit you in a moment) in Cheyenne, a restaurant that had more than its fill in character but left us questioning our pickers. 

This fried food frolic left us feeling like we were 8½ months pregnant for the last three hours of the drive. You would think the lesson would be learned, but it turns out we have a history with misjudgment. 

When making the decision to attend this training, we heard awesome reviews from others. We still thought it was a bad idea. How could this be a good idea with a dissertation to write, curriculum projects to finish, and relationships in which we’d like to invest? 

Boy, were we wrong. We do have too much work to do, and we do love our friends and family, but we had no idea how much more we could learn and grow. We are learning a ton about ourselves, each other, and God’s plan for our lives. What seemed to be a terrible idea, turned out to be just what the doctor ordered. 

We’ll still misjudge situations—evidenced by the fact that I (Tommy) took down 20 hot wings the other night and could not sleep a bit. That being said, we are both so thankful that what seemed to be so bad is turning into something that is oh sooo good.

Wonderfully Made

Over the past two months Tommy and I have received some very special news... both of our sisters are pregnant with the first little ones.
(Congratulations John & Beth Tinsley and Dan & Megan Quinn!!)
We are already blessed with a niece and two nephews (see pic of Ashley, Jack, and Charlie with Nana and Opa below) and we are thrilled about the imminent addition of two new little ones!

Like any proud Auntie and Uncle, we are more than happy to share pictures of our soon-to-arrive nieces or nephews!
This is Baby Tinsley (Tommy's sister and brother-in-law), due in late April.

Last week, Megan and Dan (Mandi's sister and brother-in-law) invited us to participate in the gender determination ultrasound appointment. What an incredible experience, to see this little one wiggling around! Baby BOY Quinn will make his arrival in early May.

Of all the things we'll miss, meeting these two babies when they enter the world is definitely at the top of our list. However, we know God is good and He is in control. We already feel blessed beyond measure and so full of love for them! Please lift their parents up in prayer--for safe and healthy pregnancies and for preparing them to raise their little ones according to His will.

"Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things." [Ecclesiastes 11:5]

Please pray! We drive to Colorado Springs this Sunday (with one pit stop in Salt Lake City). Please pray for safety for our long journey. We will be attending a three-week training session for missionaries entering the field. Pray that we would be willing learners as we soak in information about culture, life balance, and field work. Pray that we connect with other couples and develop some new friendships.

Ironwoman

My dear friend Courtney Welden competes her first Ironman today. This incredible feat includes a running a marathon, completing a 112-mile bike ride, and swimming more than two miles.

Courtney decided to use this opportunity as a platform to tell others about New Life Homes and raise additional funds to support our work there.

Regardless of what happens today, Tommy and I are so proud of Courtney! She has chosen to approach a demanding feat in such a purposeful way--what an amazing woman! To see her video about the race, check out our previous entry "Tri-ing for Something Greater."

The Mighty Moringa

We were surprised to find out recently that the profitability of the agricultural enterprises that support New Life Homes have changed dramatically since we were there in 2007. At one point, a robust laying hen operation was the most profitable operation that supported the farm. Today, the moringa has taken over the top spot.

The leaves of the moringa tree are incredibly nutritious. They are rich in protein, vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, and minerals. 

Here's a look at some of the nutritional benefits.

Currently, the leaves are harvested, dried, and ground into a fine powder.
Here are some photos of the moringa dryers on the farm.

The drying process stabilizes the shelf-life of the leaf. The powder is then sold at the local market or consumed on the farm. When cooking, ground moringa is added like a seasoning and the nutritional value of the meal is enhanced immediately--and we've heard it's pretty tasty too!

Sometimes the Chicken Doesn't Make it Across the Road

People often ask about what we will eat while in Swaziland. We will eat a plethora of vegetables, a passel of corn and corn by-products, rice, and a whole lotta chicken. Raising chickens has become a very successful income generating enterprise at New Life Homes. Live chickens are sold at markets in the capital city, Mbabane.

Tommy and a few of the farmhands loading up the birds early in the morning.

The chickens raised for meat also are harvested to support the many growing bodies on the farm. Every few weeks the farm is covered in feathers as a number of women from the community help with the harvesting and cleaning of the birds.

Another way chickens are utilized (in a bit less gruesome fashion) is through the large free-range egg production enterprise. The eggs are gathered, cleaned, and packaged on the farm and are sold in grocery stores throughout Swaziland under the much sought after “Likhaya Lemphilo Lensha” or “New Life Homes” label. 

The value of chickens cannot be understated in Swaziland. Whenever you and your family sit down before a heaping plate of BBQ chicken, think about us--it is almost guaranteed that we are having chicken for dinner too. I probably just had to work a little bit harder for my meal!