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| Baby friend liked our decorations |
We love Advent.
We like the tradition of lighting candles each night (we do it at mealtime) and keeping track of the approach of Christmas with different advent calendars. We also love the 4 theme words of Advent: Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. We don’t know who came up with these traditions, but they are good ones. We enjoy the opportunity it brings to reflect on these different words—words that are so much a part of the good news. If you think about it, it is possible to tell the entire story of the good news 4 times using each of these words as the central theme each time. Don’t believe us? Try it out with your family or friends. You may be surprised by the blessing it will be. Or reflect for just a moment on each theme.
The good news takes us out of despair and brings us into eternal, steadfast hope.
The good news transforms our anxious, rebelling, war-weary hearts in a broken war-weary world and brings us into everlasting peace that can remains even in the face of suffering.
The good news takes our weeping, our heaviness, our shame, our hard and jaded lives and gives us an unexplainable joy that shines out to others and brings life in the midst of darkness.
The good news takes our anger, our bitterness, our judgmentalism, or hatred, our stone hearts and gives us a new heart, that overflows with love that is not our own and that is vaster than the oceans.
How wonderful is the good news! It changes everything!
This past week we have had both moments of hope and peace that have encouraged us and we hope will encourage you too:
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| Special pancake |
Hope usually means having a long-term view. A long-term view requires patience. Last week we were talking about those who had come before us. Some of them had worked here for years without seeing any fruit. Some of them saw plants sprout up but only to see it wither in the sun or be choked by the cares of this world. Recently a visitor who had worked on the islands many years before came to visit. He reflected on how few people passed things onto their children. Yet today we can think of at least 4 families who are doing just that and whose children know a different way of life. He also reflected on how they had never had any of the written word in the island language. Today islanders are reading and studying in their own language and the work goes forward! There is still a long way to go, but we have great hope! Great things are possible! Like Abraham, we may not see it is, but we trust in the promise and our hope is sure.
Peace
If you’ve been reading the blog carefully, you may have noticed we’ve been asking for prayer for Tom’s friend Fakhadi. (Check out this blog from January to refresh your memory about him.) In the past month he has not had peace. His family was greatly worried about him. He stopped going out, going to work, going to pray. He was not leaving his room. He was not returning calls. Tom’s friend, the Pharisee, was having some sort of crisis. After multiple calls and visits I (Tom) was able to go and meet him, speak with him, offer him the opportunity to find peace. He appeared to be interested. Unfortunately this week, Fakhadi is feeling better and seems like he has returned to his “old self”. He tells me he has peace and that the peace I offer him is false, but at the same time his family can see that he does not have peace.
Conversely, our sister ‘Dunga’ is weathering a storm. Her family is making life difficult for her. She does not know what will happen. The future is uncertain. She may even be kicked out of her home. And yet, she is finding peace in the midst of the storm.
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| At recent event |
PRAYERS ANSWERED
Megan is feeling much better. Thank you for praying! Our vision tripper made it safely to Clove Island and has been learning a lot about our team and island culture— pray that it would make the way forward for her clear. We have colleagues from the small island visiting right now as they head to the French Island for vacation— it is encouraging to see how God is at work in their family.
PRAYERS REQUESTED
Continue to pray for Dunga. She’s heard that her father’s side of the family want to confront her as well. Pray for hope, peace, joy and love to abound in her heart. It is really hot and humid! Pray for our energy levels in the hot season. Pray for our vision tripper as she travels back home to the US this coming week— it is a complicated time to travel internationally. On Wednesday, Tom is hoping to celebrate with some men he has been studying with and hopefully connect them to other islanders who have gone through the same process of seeking and study. Pray for blessed interactions and for continuing interest. One of our medical teammates has been very sick— she tested negative for COVID and dengue, pray for quick and full healing for her. Pray for that the light of good news would shine brightly on Clove Island in this Advent season!
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