Growing older gracefully

Now I remind you that I am not, I repeat, I am not getting older any faster than anyone else out there reading this frivolous message. Terri is still my inspiration to stay young at heart! And I have to say (quietly you know) that I am glad she does.

My 59th birthday was not without all the special attention that practically embarrasses one. Different celebrations including Apple Pie, Chocolate Cheese Cake, and Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting stretched over a week including 4 missionary families with three great MK’s and 3 home staff missionaries as well. Really though our Guyana Field Conference brought everyone together in Georgetown so I was psyched to have a lot of extra fellowship and fun times concurrent with my birthday week.

I am grateful that I am only 59 and able to continue serving my Lord and Savior with all my heart as a discipling missionary here in Guyana. We head back to Nigg Saturday to begin discipleship in the Edinburgh Bible Church but we will continue to fellowship at the Tain Bible Church and maintain the relationships that we have already made there.

My tumultuous life with Buzz, the parrot

It is Sunday afternoon and I am relaxing at the keyboard waiting for 4:30 pm to come so we can call Bekah via our computer for only 3 cents per minute. How civilized. Speaking of civility, I am sipping one of my last cups of Barney’s coffee named Santa’s White Christmas and the 8 O’clock Hazelnut brand combined. This coffee is so good that Buzz my pet parrot, who is on my shoulder pesters me for a nip as well. Thanks Bekah for the Java/Joe/ Cafe. Then it is back to “New ERA” Guyanese coffee which I like too so it’s a win/win situation. I hope Buzz's former caretakers don't mind the coffee--really it will not continue. He gets too much of a buzz from it.

I have “discovered” a money saving scheme that works for me but I wouldn’t want to publish it too much except when we need the extra income! Right? I DON’T THINK SO! One can re-use a paper coffee filter for up to 10 times by just dumping out the grounds and rinsing the filter and replacing it carefully while still wet back into the filter bin. Has this Baby Boomer crossed the line on gourmet coffee etiquette or what for all you Busters or is this something that you have known about for years but never admitted to like eating Sugar-Frosted Flakes? I would really feel quite guilty now to use just one filter per pot of coffee. In spite of all that—please do not send me your used coffee filters. All this came about when the country ran out of coffee filters—yes the country. “The” distributor must have run out just before Christmas. A friendly business man had his wife bring back some for me via his wife who was returning to Guyana for the holidays. I was using paper towels—ohh this story is getting worse. Anyone for another cup before I send this?

We had a wonderful Church service with a great time to worship God too. We were able to bring 2 new people to church today. One asked for prayer because she regrets that she has believed in the wrong things all her life and wants to now make a change. Her recently deceased husband of 26 years just trusted Christ before he died. Pray for Pastor Mike and his wife Maria as God works in this vital church. Pray for us too as we mentor them and disciple others down here.

Bye for the 2 of us.

The wayward sheep has returned!

Did I tell you that the wayward sheep has come home? Well, he has so they are all accounted for now. We are working with them again to help them be stronger for the next trials.

Thanks for all the prayers. God is merciful, has been and always will be merciful—and His righteous kingdom is in my view. God is teaching us as we go in this discipleship thing and has encouraged us tremendously as well.

How is God working in your life? Let us know. We would love to hear a short story from you. Bye, Joe

Life with the hiccups

We love what we are doing here and God has blessed us immeasurably while we have been doing it. We trust you can say that too. However life also comes with a hiccup or two!

Here is the hiccup. Discipleship is a give and take proposition. Sometimes its “we give our all to them and they take it all for granted anyway.” Thankfully it’s mostly not like that.

We love what we are doing and know that you know that it’s not all peaches and cream. Recently a situation has come up in our church involving some of our disciples that has required a lot of extra counseling and attention. Thank God that it is mostly all dealt with now but pray that those involved will now become stronger and wiser in the Lord because of it and that the church will become better as a result of the personal growth. Pray for one holdout too!

Satan is still a roaring lion looking for weak Christians to devour. "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil prowls about like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen 1Peter 5.8-11

~Written by Joe on safari with the hiccups