Different Types of Lost

Our English Club busy at a game.

Sometimes a word you hear from one person is exactly the right word for another.  You didn’t come up with it, your only job is to be the messenger. 

That’s what happened recently as I listened to my island brother share his insights on a famous passage.  He shared about three famous stories that are told in succession. The first story concerns a lost sheep and a shepherd who leaves the 99 to find and save the missing lamb.  The second involves a woman who has lost a coin.  She lights a candle and searches her house high and low until she finds it.  The third is probably the most well known.  It is the story of a wayward son who takes his inheritance, squanders it and returns to his home in rags only to be welcomed back with love by his waiting father.

My island brother’s insight into these stories was compelling. In each of these stories, he explained, something is being sought, yet they describe three very different types of people.  The first is a person in crisis, desperate and in need.  The shepherd finds the lost lamb in distress.  The second is a person unaware that they are being sought.  A coin does not know if it is lost or found, yet the widow searches for it diligently until she finds it.  The third story is of someone who feels ashamed.  They don’t believe they deserve to be sought, but the father is waiting for them, waiting to welcome them back.

She lost another tooth!

All around us, my friend explained, there are people like this.  Some people are in trouble. Some people are unaware.  Some people are ashamed.  But all of them are being sought. Who are we to judge which type of person our neighbor or co-worker might be? It was a beautiful devotion and lead us to a wonderful time of prayer. 

A few days later I was with a group of men.  One of them said he wanted to know how to enter the kingdom of light.  His friend started to yell at him, then turned to me and said, “That guy’s not serious. He’s just joking around.”  But the guy looked at me intently and asked again how to enter the kingdom.  I don’t know this guy very well.  It’s possible he wasn’t sincere and was just jerking me around.  It’s also possible that up until that moment, he was just living life and had never given eternity a second thought.  But my mind went to my friend’s devotion.  Could this be a lost coin?  His friend kept up his haranguing and honestly, I didn’t know their hearts, so I said, let’s read these stories.  We read the three stories and then I shared the things my island brother had shared with me.  Different kinds of people are being sought.  Some are seriously searching. Others are surprised to be found.  But it makes them no less found.  And who are we to say what goes on in a man’s heart?

This papaya lost its seeds!

So I shared with them the way to enter the kingdom and we prayed together.  Was a lost coin found?  Time will tell.

PRAYERS ANSWERED
We had a huge answer to pray this week. After years of prayer, our faithful friend Elewa told us that her husband has accepted the good news! We rejoice with her and what this means for her family. Elewa also now has a plan in place to travel to Kenya for medical treatment in mid-Sept and it looks like her financial needs will be met to make that happen. We’ve heard some initial reports that the off-site meetings that our small-island colleagues had went well.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
One of our good friend’s cousin died this past week. She was a young mother with a toddler and a baby. Pray for her mourning family. Please pray for our newest brother (Elewa’s husband) that he would grow strong and be prepared for the persecution to come and that God would protect his family and marriage. Our teammate leaves in just two weeks for a long break to the US— pray that she would have opportunities to share and tie up any lose ends. Two of our island brothers are traveling this week, pray for safe travels. Megan is having some tummy travels and our daughter’s allergies have picked up making her wheezy, pray for healing.

Divine Appointment

Another ceremony for Tom to attend this week

It was dark out on the street. The kids were already in bed and we would be leaving early the next morning for the airport, but I needed to get in my final farewells to our close neighbors. Thankfully island adults are often gathered outside their homes at night. So I quickly found all the people that I see on a daily basis to give my goodbyes. Most of them already knew we were traveling to Madagascar for a couple weeks, but in island culture it is very important to give a final goodbye right before leaving (they even have a special verb for it). If you fail to do this, then people will give you a hard time about it later.

So I said a final goodbye to the corner store lady, the neighbors right across from us, the old lady that always sits on the road and more. They all echoed their blessings over our trip that we might travel safely and return in good health. Feeling accomplished, I was about to head home when another person popped into my mind, Ma Avasa. Even though I don’t see her very often (maybe once every couple weeks) I remembered that she had complained last time we traveled that I hadn’t said the final goodbye to her. I didn’t really have to seek her out. Her complaints had been more teasing since we aren’t really friends, but I also knew that she would be pleased if I said goodbye. Also more importantly, thinking of her had come out of nowhere and I felt it was God that had brought her to mind.

A friend in used shirt from the US

Now, how to find her? I wasn’t exactly sure where she lived. She wasn’t part of the nightly “hang-out on the street” crowd and she lived tucked into another part of the neighborhood that I don’t know very well. Normally I wouldn’t be exploring the neighborhood at night, but I wasn’t bothered. I entered into the system of alleys hoping my memory would spark once I saw the correct turn. Sure enough the next opening looked familiar and as soon as I turned I heard my name called out. It was Avasa… I told her that I was looking for her mother and she was able to guide me past several doors and up some stairs to where her mother was.

I didn’t know it but just that day Ma Avasa had fallen sick. She was weak and her heart was racing and she didn’t understand what was going on. It is very common to visit someone who is sick, but I quickly told her that I hadn’t known she was sick. I explained to her that we were traveling and that I had come to say goodbye but that I was also glad that I had come because now I could pray for her! After she gave me permission to pray (even though I would pray in a different name), I prayed for her in the local language. After that I left and went home. We went on our trip the next day.

Between our travels and transitioning back to the islands, I had almost forgotten about that little divine appointment, but earlier this week Ma Avasa appeared at our house. She greeted me and asked about our trip, but I quickly turned the conversation to her. How was she feeling? She was full of thanksgiving. She was better and her heart hadn’t bothered her again! I took the opportunity to thank God for her healing. She quickly started repeating what a good person and neighbor I was. I tried to deflect her praise and say that God was the good one, but in her mind that was already a given.

Married 16 years!

Not sure if there will be more to this story. Is this the beginning of a closer relationship with Ma Avasa? Will this answer to prayer lead to more interactions, more opportunities to share with her?  But sometimes great things start with small actions.  Who will God bring to mind next time? Will I be sensitive enough to realize it?

PRAYERS ANSWERED
Thank you for praying.  God has answered our prayers from last week in some very specific ways.  First of all, the twinge in Megan’s back is doing better!  Secondly, the woman who had left returned for more studies and she also brought a friend, who is also very interested in studying. These are the very things for which we had asked prayer.  Tom’s visits with the guys seem especially encouraging of late.  Could it be obstacles are coming down?  We hope so.  We celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary and our teammates took our kids so we could have a hike together and date night!

PRAYERS REQUESTED
Pray for Ma Avasa, that her story will continue.  Pray for more divine appointments like the one with Ma A.  Pray for those who are studying to bring friends, to understand more, and to join in the kingdom of light.  Pray for Elewa as she is hoping to travel soon for medical treatment. She is gathering funds— pray for clear direction and healing for her. Pray for another island brother whose father is sick and alone on the French island. He is looking into traveling to be with his father, but he would have to travel illegally. Pray for wisdom for him.  Pray for our colleagues on the little island.  They have some big meetings this week to decide on the direction and future vision of their work and to help work out some of the kinks in communication and differences so that they can move forward. 

Straight-Forward Fallenness

Tom at ceremony

A few weeks ago I was invited to an English ceremony.  I have been to so many English ceremonies over the years on the islands, so that now they rarely make an impression anymore.  Usually there are speeches about the importance of learning English, how helpful it is for gaining things in this life like a good education, better networks, and savvier business dealings.  But I was struck by the wording of the 14 year old girl who stood up to give her speech in English.  Her friend stood by her translating each sentence into the island language so that the parents and friends could understand what she had to say. 

“English is so important for education,” she began.  I had heard this kind of speech before.  “We all know,” she said, “that the most important thing in this life is to find money so that you can buy things like a house, car, clothes, or anything you want.  English will help you to do that.”  I listened, somewhat dumb-struck as I watched people nod in approval, shout amen and applaud her answer.  No one disagreed. Everyone was on the same page. Then the moment passed.  The speaker praised her teachers and parents and classmates.  The ceremony continued. 

Students at ceremony

A perspective that demonstrated such lostness, such fallen thinking had just been accepted by everyone. As a westerner, I tend to assume that everyone knows that you can’t say that money is the most important thing is life— you have to say something inherently good like God, love, or peace…

Have you ever noticed how good we are at saying the “right” answer even if we don’t believe it?  So many times we put on a mask, we say the things we imagine people want us to say or what we have been taught is the right answer.

“If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it,” we learn at an early age.  But that doesn’t stop plenty of us from taking pleasure in the opportunity to say a scathing remark, whether for a laugh or for sheer pleasure of it. We remember the maxims but don’t necessarily live by it.   Many might agree with Anne Frank’s words that, “Human greatness does not lie in wealth or power, but in character and goodness.”  And yet so many of the “great ones” go unrecognized by our society.  And then, of course, most of us would never claim that the most important thing is money, but our daily lives may show a different story.

If we are honest with ourselves, there is a great deal of hypocrisy in our Western society.  We say one thing, but do another.  It is one thing to know the right answer and another thing to live by it.  But imagine if we didn’t know the “right” answers.  What if our words actually lined up with our actions?

Our son turns 7!

In some things, islanders don’t even know that their thinking isn’t “right”.  I remember the day I understood enough of the island language to realize people were talking about me, gossiping about me in my presence.  “Good,” said my language helper, “now you will be able to understand when people are talking about you and they won’t be able to do it anymore.”  I remember the day my son came home from school telling me that his classmate hit him. When the teacher heard what had happened he told my son to hit his classmate back. I thought I had gotten used to this straight-forward fallenness, but it has been two weeks since that 14 year old gave her speech. Yet, her words remain with me.  “The most important thing in this life is to find money.”  If we are honest, there are PLENTY of people in the West who believe just the same as this girl, but they would be unlikely to say it. That’s not the ‘right’ answer. To hear it so plainly stated and plainly accepted brings sorrow to my heart.  “It is NOT the most important thing.”  I want to shout, “It will leave you empty and dead.  There is only one thing that will give you life.”  But who will listen?

PRAYERS ANSWERED
Today is a big island holiday remembering how God provided the sacrifice to Abraham. We thank God for His provision and for the opportunity to live and serve on the islands. The video conferencing with the language consultant went well this past week. Also audio recording of the translation of the first book is going well. Our youngest son had his 7th birthday this past week— we are thankful for him!


PRAYERS REQUESTED
Our teammate was studying with a group of neighbor women until a key woman left suddenly to the other side of the island. This woman has just returned and hopefully they will restart their studies together this week. Pray that their study would go well and that more women would become engaged in what they are learning. One of our teammates is sick, pray for her quick recovery. Megan’s back has developed a painful twinge the past couple days— pray that it would resolve quickly and not become a bigger problem. Tom had brought an island brother to meet with the group of men who are seeking— this has turned into a good connection and the island brother continued to engage with the group even when Tom was away. We pray that God might use this island brother to help the group overcome some of their remaining obstacles.

What Makes A Country Beautiful

Clove Island Capital, is it beautiful?

When we first got to the islands, we were often asked by islanders for our opinion and impressions of the islands. What did we think of them? It was a common enough question that within the first month of language learning I memorized the line, “I like the islands because it is beautiful, the food is good and the people are kind.” Most islanders were very pleased with this response and happy to hear their home being praised by a foreigner. But more than once I had islanders argue, claiming that the islands were not beautiful! With my limited language I remember being confused by their reaction. “They live on a tropical island! Of course it is beautiful!” 

Once we had more language we realized that we were defining beauty differently. When we talked about a “beautiful country” we were thinking of the beaches, of the green hills and the ocean. When islanders talked about a beautiful country, they talked about signs of development like fancy buildings and good roads. “We don’t have any tall or beautiful buildings,” they would complain, “some people still live in homes of mud or tin. This is not beautiful.”

We have sometimes been frustrated with how much islanders take for granted the natural beauty of their home. We get frustrated by how they mar the natural beauty with trash and bad environmental practices. For many islanders protecting the environment isn’t even on the list of things they would want to improve on the islands. For them, the important things are development and infrastructure— this is what it would take to make the islands beautiful in their eyes.

Before we left for Madagascar, our good friend, an island sister, warned us, “You will find some beautiful things there and some things that are not beautiful.”

We thought this was beautiful

She went on to explain this comment by talking about all the material things people can find and buy there. So much more than the islands! Then she became sad. She was in the capital of Madagascar and encountered a level of poverty that you never see on the islands. She saw people rummaging through garbage and children sleeping in the street. One day she even passed a child who had died sleeping outside the night before. She said that multiple times the sight of these things drove her to tears as she imagined her own little girl reduced to such a life. This was not beautiful.

We don’t know if we’ll ever talk about what you can find in the shops when we talk about a country’s beauty. But we do understand the sentiment of our island sister— poverty and people suffering is not beautiful, so in that way we understand how signs of success and indications of a developed economy can be beautiful.

So is this beautiful?

If a Westerner were to ask us about the beauty of Madagascar. I confess that we would spend most of the time talking about the beauty of the beaches, forests, nature and wildlife that we encountered there. If an islander asked, we would know to talk about the state of development and poverty.

PRAYERS ANSWERED
It’s good to be getting back into the swing of things back on Clove Island.  Tom and one of our colleagues were at a ceremony this week for an English program in a remote village.  The ceremony went well and the drive to and from was not too difficult.  We’ve had some encouraging news about brothers and sisters meeting together, children’s programs and newly translated booklets with good book stories for kids being put to good use.  Our neighbors who have been traveling for the past two months are back too, and with a clear diagnosis for their daughter’s health problems. We are happy to reconnect with them.  Megan’s back is doing fine! A few weeks ago a brother and sister from our island went to the other islands to mediate conflict and encourage gatherings— it sounds like it went well and that everyone was encouraged by the interaction and the possible precedent it sets for confronting issues.


PRAYERS REQUESTED
Our friend (who we thought miscarried and then we thought was fine) has miscarried.  We are deeply saddened by this news, pray for her and her husband.  A number of friends also failed to pass the big exam that is necessary to go to university.  This was also hard news.  Pray for their studies to continue as they will not have a chance to try again until next year.  Pray for people around the world living in a state of poverty.  Poverty is less about money and more about hope.  May they be raised out of poverty and into hope and freedom. A former worker on the islands is back visiting— pray for him as he tries to teach and encourage old island friends during his days here.