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Dear family and friends,
HAPPY SPRING!
We are happy for the rains that have come since March! Even though we don’t have 4 seasons as in many places, we do have rainy and dry. The hills are now bright green and the flowers in the garden are blooming nicely! One thing that occurs here with transition from dry to rainy season is rainstorms with strong winds. Last night we were praying that the Lord would protect our house and others around because of such a storm. This morning we looked in our yard and saw that a large tree had been blown over. The tree pulled down the electric cable feeding our house, but power to our house was not interrupted. The tree came so close to the house as to bend the edge of the tin roof, but did not do any serious damage. Join us in thanking God for protecting our house!
When we think of spring we think of new life and new beginnings. We are praying that new beginnings can take place in Cameroon and there can be a means of beginning peace talks. It almost seems like a joke to talk of it now after 3 years of uprising, but all things are possible with God.
HAPPY RESURRECTION DAY!
Where Deb hit the deck during the shooting
We can only imagine how discouraged the disciples felt when they witnessed the crucifixion of Christ. Surely it felt like all hope for better life in Israel was completely lost. They had left everything to follow him….and for what. The picture looked so hopeless, but then the news came that “He is not here, He has risen!!” 1 Peter 1:3 says, “Give praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy he has given us a new birth and a living hope. This hope is living because Jesus Christ rose from the dead”. That changed the whole picture for the disciples! They now spent the rest of their lives going into all the world to tell others about this amazing Jesus. This hope also gives us courage and determination as we continue to face many challenges in our ministry here. We have had a few days this last 3 months that it seemed the security of the hospital was no longer in place. Debbie found herself on the floor beside a patient bed in the men’s ward when gunfire took place on the compound one day. This kind of thing happens every day many places of the country but was a first for our hospital compound. It turns out the gunfire was between a group on the hill near us and some who were on the compound getting medical care. No one was injured and only a few glass panes broken. Praise the Lord it has not happened since that day. Some asked if we were going to go back to our country because of this insecurity. As we have prayed and we believe God is still calling us to be here, we still have work that we can do and be a productive part of the Kingdom work going on here. He never promises it will be without challenge or even insecurity.
HAPPY SHABOT! SHABOT SHALOM
Garden of Gethsemane (Olive trees)
This is a greeting given in Hebrew for Jews on sundown Friday night, when Sabbath starts, to Saturday sundown. We had the opportunity to go to Israel, on a Holy Land tour with Rev. Larry Burd from Calvary Baptist Church in Easton, PA, along with 13 others, all from different churches in Pennsylvania. We went with Dennis and Nancy Palmer, which many of you know, and another missionary couple from Mbingo. It was a trip of a lifetime. To walk where Jesus walked and to see places we had only read about was amazing and overwhelming. A couple of highlights were being in a worship service on a boat on the Sea of Galilee where Jesus walked on water and spent much time with his disciples; and spending time in the Garden of Gethsemane praying.
Thank you all for your continued support through prayer and contributions. We are so grateful!
In His Matchless Love,
Rick and Debbie