April 2011 Newsletter

Dear Friends and Family,

I’m taking a few moments from the preparations for second term to get out another newsletter—it’s always so much harder to find a spare moment during the term. The four weeks of break have flown by, and we are all getting ready to start our busy term schedules again. One of our permanent staff members, Bethany Fuller, is on a well deserved furlough this term, so we are finding out how many things she did quietly behind the scenes to keep this place organized and running. Thankfully the Lord has led some young education students to spend six weeks with us, so we have a few extra pairs of hands. As always, the more staff on station, the more we can accomplish and the more time we have to reach out to the local community. We continue to pray that the Lord will bring the right people at the right time to join in our ministry here at Sakeji.
Beth Sheach and I took a trip all the way down to the capital, Lusaka, at the start of the break for some shopping and to spend some time off station. It was a 1,000 kilometer trip that involved lots of adventures, laughter, and gave us another good look at life in Zambia. Things like the noise of the city, the crazy drivers, the lorries overflowing with people, the constant hazards of chickens, pigs, goats, and pedestrians crossing the road suddenly, and the many people selling tomatoes and watermelons by the roadside are all little snapshots of this beautiful country. Lots of businesses and restaurants are coming up from South Africa as well as from overseas, so more and more things are becoming available in country. One of the malls, Manda Hill, was recently renovated into a two story structure with an escalator and two level car park that makes you forget for a moment that you aren’t in North America. Yet, even though it was fun to shop and enjoy the city, both Beth and I were very glad to return to our quiet bit of bush again. While it involves more long range planning and occasional inconvenience, I wouldn’t trade living in the bush for the city!
During the term break a Brass Tack’s team has been working on the new dining hall. After seeing the slab for so many months, it’s exciting to watch the walls go up and see the shape of the rooms inside. Part of the existing kitchen wall had to be knocked out so a new wall could be built, so we are laughing at ourselves for the nightly locking up of a building with a gapping hole in the side! The current team hopes to see the roof on and the inside walls plastered before they leave. Near the end of second term we will have some more teams coming up to carry on the work while the weather is still conducive to building.
As we continue through the year, we hope and pray that the students will learn and remember not only the three R’s, but also that they will come to know the Lord Jesus better and later go on to live a life that pleases Him. Thank you so much for all your support and prayers; you play an important part in our ministry here. May He find us faithful,

~Lina