April 2016 newsletter

Clinging to Jesus this Easter time

There is one English speaking church community here that meets two Sunday's a month. So on the alternate Sunday's we do 'home church'. This has been a great time of bible stories, singing, drawing Goliath and David (Rachel's favourite story!) and praying together. Obviously this is very basic due to the age of our audience but it's great to see them both eager to know more about Jesus. 

 

Last summer we were kindly given two copies of the same children's bible (by different people). It's called the 'the Jesus Storybook Bible' and is a great bible for Rachel. It also comes with a DVD set of the stories animated and narrated. So for home church we usually watch one of the DVD stories. Last Sunday was the off week so we were home with the girls. Being palm Sunday we decided that this would be a great opportunity to talk to Rachel about the true Easter story. As we listened to the animated story 'the sun stops shining', I watched Rachel with big eyes sitting so still on Sams lap. As she took in the reality of what happened to Jesus, tears pricked the back of my eyes. 

Jesus came to rescue us...Jesus died on a cross for us...Jesus was beaten and cruelly killed so we may be free...Jesus rescued the whole world. She wasn't scared, she wasn't horrified, she was clearly moved and she had many questions. The bottom line was though that she in some part understood that Jesus died for her. Wow!

We then went on to watch the resurrection, 'Gods wonderful surprise' so Rachel could understand the full story. As we watched the change in the woman's emotions from such deep sadness, to confusion, to fear, to such unexpected gladness, a line in the story resonated so deeply within me...'all Mary wanted in that moment was to cling to Jesus and never let Him go'. 

Living in Chad has definitely taught me how much I want to and need to cling to Jesus everyday. I honestly can say I don't know how I would live life here if I wasn't clinging to Jesus. So many incidents and occasions come to mind where I can so clearly see that I had nothing but Jesus...the night we had a medical emergency and are desperately trying to find the mission hospital out into the dessert trying to identify random landmarks in the dark...we clung to Jesus who guided us there; the moment a motorcyclist crashed into the back of the car as we were turning and in seconds many people have surrounded the car...we clung to Jesus who provided the right person to give the right advise in their most basic French so I could understand; daily driving and living in a city where we are foreigners and much of the language around us is so unknown to us...we cling to Jesus to understand and be understood; when riots erupt and the sound of gunfire rings round while the smell of tear gas creeps in...we cling to Jesus for our security and protection; as daily life on the compound in such high heats with small children so easily becomes monotonous and purposeless...we cling to Jesus for our identity and purpose in it all. 

As each day comes with knows and unknowns, expectations and fears, joys and frustrations one thing I am certain of everyday is that as I cling to Jesus and never let Him go, He will hold me tight and never let me go...and that is how I can keep on living the life He has called us to.

A glimpse of the work MAF supports here in Chad

Every time we fly here in Chad we have a unique and special opportunity to share in life changing work that is happening all over the country. Through the testimonies and stories of many of our partners that we fly, we can really see God at work in the lives of the local Chadians.  Here is an example of some of the work we support.

Paving the way for Peace in Chad

Chad is a country rich in culture and beauty – but it is also threatened by instability and violence, often stemming from religious tensions. As followers of the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) MAF loves supporting reconciliation and dialogue where there is conflict. That is one of the reasons why MAF provides regular flights to the pastors of the ENTENTE Eglise Mission Evangelique au Chad, which is the alliance of Christian evangelical churches in Chad. Its Department of Ethics, Peace & Justice (EPJ) has been organising workshops to bring Muslim, Catholic and Evangelical communities together to discuss differences and similarities in perspectives, strategies for nonviolent conflict management, and mediation techniques. These workshops are specifically designed to attract high level government and community authorities, religious leaders, women and youth.

On one of the recent flights, we flew Pastor Potifar, the head of the ENTENTE and Djidda Mahamat, one of the senior Imams from the Capital N’Djamena to one of these workshops held in Am Timan. Am Timan is a primarily Arabic-speaking city of an estimated 50,000 indigenous people in the east of Chad, and serves as the capital of the Salamat region which borders the Central African Republic. Since the onset of the Darfur crisis in Sudan in the mid-2000s, eastern Chad has become home to over 300,000 migrating refugees and internally displaced people. Years ago, Am Timan only had a small community of Christians, but thanks to the work of the ENTENTE, the Christian community has grown. A small but thriving church now exists in the economic centre. Am Timan has been through a tumultuous period, and religious identity has on some occasions been a source of conflict in the city.

Before the flight, Sam had a chance to catch up with Pastor Potifar and Mr Mahamat. Both were excited to join the flight together, aware of the significance of their presence as two senior religious leaders in Chad at this workshop. When asked about the workshops, Pastor Potifar explained: “We are building relationships and paving the way for the gospel.” Indeed, this seems to be the case. In discussions on the flight to Am Timan, MAF pilot Phil Henderson discovered that: “One of the highlights of the workshops is [when] the participants work through the Bible to search for Jesus’ teaching on peace and also the Quran to search for what Muhamad taught on peace.” Phil was amazed to hear of the Imams’ reaction after the session: “The Imams ask why they have never been exposed to any of the teachings of Jesus. Just a mere reference to the fact that he was a respected Prophet.”     

The ENTENTE has spent the last 18 months on interfaith conflict management, in partnership with the Mennonite Central Committee. They have been credited with promoting peace among the communities they are working with, which is a direct result of these workshops. There is now a growing demand to expand and carry out these workshops throughout the country. Mark Tymm, the ENTENTE Peace & Justice Assistant who helps run the workshops highlights the challenges for peace in Chad and explains that there are many misunderstandings and misrepresentations among the interfaith relationships. One of the aims of the workshops is to reveal some of the misconceptions both Muslims and Christians have of their fellow Chadians. He illustrates the change the workshops can bring about: “At the beginning of the week, participants will literally sit on opposite sides of the room from each other. However, by the end of the week, they are laughing, joking, eating together and sharing stories. The intensive final day of regional group work allows participants a concentrated time of strategic planning and brainstorming on how they can work together to live in more mutually beneficial and healthier communities.”

 

Mark continues to say, “The transformation of relationships after these workshops is perhaps one of the most remarkable things I have seen during my time in Chad. People who have been taught at a fundamental level to see each other as enemies are able to see past their differences and sit down to talk about peaceful living and community building.” He also highlights the role of MAF in this peace building work. Due to the rough terrain of Chad’s vast territories, travelling to the workshop can be a long, tiresome journey. Mark has experienced an exhausting 17 hour journey across the Sahel, crammed into the back of a mid-size pickup with three other adult men. He describes the support of MAF as an “incredible blessing” for their work, and feels “very fortunate” to swap a dangerous, time-consuming, tiring road trip with a quicker, safer MAF flight: “Whether we’re off to the south, the north or the far eastern regions of the country, traveling by air will always be faster, easier and by far the safest option.”

Although it might take time to change preconceptions and clear up misunderstandings between Muslims and Christians in Chad, MAF is proud to support these important workshops, which do not only help to bring about peace between the religions but also pave the way for a great understanding of the Gospel in Chad.

Please do continue to pray for peace and unity within Chad, especially at this time as we are approaching the elections.

 

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! The tree is up, the lights are twinkling, the advent calendar is slowly counting down, and finally we are looking forward to Christmas in our own home. We were just flicking back through our blog posts and found one from the end of last year entitled '12 beds in 12 months'. At that time who would have known it would be another 12 months and 5 more beds before we finally made our last move for a few years. So now we are here, moved in and starting to get unpacked. The MAF plane from Uganda arrived on Tuesday last week with the rest of our belongings and so we are finally opening boxes packed two years ago, which is very exciting. Each day has felt like an early Christmas with forgotten toys, books, ornaments and kitchen dishes being unearthed. There are so many things that we are grateful to finally have back with us to make our house feel more homely.

 

Work life with MAF Chad has continued to be very busy for Sam with his time and attention being pulled in so many directions. We have had the privilege of supporting so many of our partners and missionaries involved in different areas of work across the country. Below is a testimony from one of our partners, talking about the difference our flights makes to their work.

‘I am sitting on a MAF plane as I type this. We are a family of 4 (soon to be 5) and we live with our colleagues (4 other adults) in a very remote area in the North of Chad. Remote, as in the last time we drove to our ministry area it took us 9 days to drive 1600km. Today's flight will take 4 hours. To get there, it is necessary to first cross dry scrub land called the Sahel, then the vast expanse of sandy desert, devoid of any marking except the tracks of those vehicles to have made this journey before us, and the skeletons of camels and ruined vehicle parts of those who did not make it. After that we have to pass through rugged mountains where the track is so rough that it quite literally shakes our vehicle apart. We drive a land cruiser as that is the toughest vehicle available to us, but still breakdowns are common.

As we go through the mountains we pass many carcasses of vehicles that have hit landmines left after wars of years past, we saw 20 or so on the last day of travel, we heard that another was added a month ago. In addition to landmines there is the local history of banditry and kidnapping. However it is a breakdown far from water that is always our greatest worry. It is possible to drive to our home in 4 or 5 days, but despite having rugged vehicles, the inevitable breakdowns mean that it usually takes much longer (we can't go far with a snapped chassis or a drive shaft that has fallen off or a wheel hub that has cracked in two, even tiny things like dust in our carburetor can bring us to a halt, not to mention getting stuck in soft sand). Only a few months ago we heard of a vehicle with 18 people on board that got off the main track and broke down in the desert, 3 were alive when they were rescued. We ourselves have come across a vehicle, broken down and running out of water. After helping them out, we used our satellite phone to call their friends to come and rescue them. We always carry 260 litres of fuel to traverse the longest gap between towns, and about 200 litres of water to keep ourselves alive for several days, but this does not leave much capacity for bringing our own cargo up.

However with MAF we can bring around 700kg of payload (including people's weight) both up and down (we coordinate with our colleagues to optimize the use of every flight, we make use of every kilo). With MAF, this otherwise long and dangerous (not to mention boring for the little ones) journey is reduced to a quick 4 hour flight. Also the trip is much more comfortable for my pregnant wife, and there is great peace of mind knowing that help can be here quickly if we have a crisis. Travel is by far the single largest expense of our ministry. When we go overland although we have to buy 500 or more litres of fuel, but this cost is only about 20% of the total, the rest being repairs. Flying with MAF is only about 20% more expensive than driving thanks to a significant subsidy made possible by the generosity of MAF’s supporters. Thank you for your help it makes a huge difference to those of us seeking to be a blessing at 'the ends of the earth'.”

This is a great example of why we are here.  We have seen a big increase of the mission community here in the last year and MAF's level of activity has increased by more than 40% since we arrived just over a year ago to meet the growing needs of so many of our partners. Managing the programme and the team has had its challenges but we are so grateful for the support we have had and the dedication of the team to serving many people at the forefront of mission

For us all as a family, living in Chad is now easier with more of everyday life becoming familiar. It is great to have experienced all the 'seasons' in Chad as we now know what to expect when. We know what hot season means (it's very very hot and you sweat all day and night), we know what dust storms look and feel like (you can taste the dust in your mouth and you feel like you are in a cloud for a few days), we know how cold winter is (you do need a blanket and a jumper even in the desert), and we know what it feels like when the first rain finally comes after 8 months to break the humidity (hallelujah!). We know when to expect the mosquitoes, the flies, the termites. Lizards all around are normal and we love to find the chameleons, praying mantis and sand lions.

We have adjusted to the new normal of limiting our movements to certain areas of town and we now fully expect to be stopped, checked and have the beeping wand search us when we go shopping, out for a meal or to one of the hotels. We still both regularly wish that we were more fluent in French and Arabic so that we can break down some of the barriers we have with relating to local Chadian friends or just communicating through everyday life.  Unfortunately though we just continue to fumble through with our broken French and non existent Arabic as best we can.  

November has just passed with two special birthdays. Rebecca turned two on the 19th and Rachel turned four on the 30th. It felt like a month of cake as we celebrated both the actual birthdays and had a joint party for them with all the compound children somewhere between the two dates. They were special days with both girls being loved by family and friends both near and far.
 

Rebecca has become a confident toddler comfortable in her surroundings and loving her time with her little friends on the compound. She is rather loud at times, singing and dancing to her own little tunes. She has grown up so much in the last few months and is now fully potty trained (hooray) and talking full sentences all day long...it is not unusual to have to ask her to stop talking so we can clean her teeth! She is on the go all day long and has even decided that day naps are now overrated...Mummy does not agree! 

Rachel is now a more independent young girl, eager to learn and loving her special friends. She has loved home school and is so keen to sound out words and to try and write the alphabet. She has a great imagination for play and it is so great to listen to her making up stories and teaching Becca songs, all about listening and obeying mummy and daddy! Her world has been slightly rocked these last few weeks as she had to say goodbye to one of her first proper friends, Nathan as he left Chad to move back to Australia. Goodbyes are hard, even more so when you are four and it then means you have to move house again. We are hoping and praying that the stability of a home now will be very beneficial for Rachel as we settle into new routines. 

Thank you for all your prayers throughout this year. As we head into 2016, here are a few areas we would really value and appreciate your prayers for:

• Our security as we live and move around the city. Although we haven’t had any targeted attacks in the capital since July, we are still very much on heightened security measures as there is a continuing threat of terrorist attacks from Boko Haram.
• Rachel as she continues to process her very close friend leaving and moving house again. We pray that she will begin to feel more settled and that the many transitions of the last two years won’t affect her going forward.
• Abby and Rachel as they embark on a new home-school curriculum from January teaching Rachel the reception year of the British curriculum.
• Praise God for good health for all of us over the last few months and pray that this will continue as we go into the New Year
• Wisdom for Sam as he continues to lead the team and manage the programme.

So, let us take this opportunity to thank you so much for your love, prayers and continued support to us as a family throughout this past year. We would like to wish you a wonderful Christmas and pray for God's blessings upon you as you enter the New Year.

 

Lots of Love and Blessings

 

Sam, Abby, Rachel and Rebecca

Refreshed!

As the summer has now come and gone we decided it was about time to turn back to sharing our news, thoughts and reflections on our life and work here in Chad.

July and August gave us an opportunity to take 6 weeks out of the programme to travel, rest, reflect, share and shop!! After a year in Chad we were definitely ready for a break and some good quality family time. If we were asked to sum up our first year, it would be have to be described as 'interesting'! While some times felt like an upward hike with no end in sight, this was very much intermixed with a sense of feeling more at home, enjoying the new familiar sights and sounds and feeling peaceful about being here. 

Fun cousin time in the UK

Returning to the UK was a special time for Rachel and Rebecca as they were able to spend a lot of time with their grandparents, aunties, uncles and more importantly cousins! It was great seeing the girls reactions to simple things...drinking water from the tap, eating strawberries and nectarines, scooting and cycling to the park, and wearing socks and trainers!! I think the biggest thing we all enjoyed was the freedom to just walk out of the house. With the recent bomb attacks in N'Djamena we were very much confined to the compound with the girls hardly leaving at all in the weeks before our leave, so to be able to walk, scoot and cycle freely felt like such a blessing to enjoy. 

Loving the beach in Florida

For this break we travelled to the UK and the USA to ensure we connected with as many of our supporters as possible and to share about our first year here. Intermixed with the sharing was some great holiday time as a family. We had a cold and wet week camping in a field in Shepton Mallet, SW England, at the New Wine United conference. This was a great week of worship and teaching, seeking and praying! It also gave us a chance to miss the heat of Chad as we camped in the freezing cold British summer! From a cold tent we jumped on a plane and had a great week in the heart of Chicago loving a bit of city life, being totally spoilt by some special friends and sharing with new friends. We then headed down to Florida for a quieter week and gave the girls their first beach experience, which they loved! After a last few days in Dallas again connecting with many friends, and sharing more about our work we headed back to the UK for a final church visit, last bits of shopping, final special moments with family and then the dreaded big bag pack!  

Back to playing on the
compound in Chad

So in a whirlwind it came and went and we have now been back in Chad for over a month and ironically Sam has already  been back in the UK for budget and managers meetings. One of our greatest prayers as we left Chad tired and a bit bruised in July, was that we would miss Chad and would be positive about our return. So far so good! We came back with open hearts and minds and are ready to see what God has in store for our next year in Chad. We have adjusted back well and the girls are coping very well with spending a lot of their time on the compound as we continue to limit our movements. Rachel is very much enjoying being back with Nathan for homeschool and I hardly see her each morning as she and Nathan finish school and then play and play till the older children come home for lunch. And little Becca is toilet training, talking loads and loving pottering with her friend Tim all over the compound.

Suicide bomb attacks in Chad's capital N'djamena...we are all safe.

Yesterday the people of Chad were in shock as the news of two suicide bombers spread fast...today we are a country in mourning, grieving 23 lives taken far too soon. 

Yesterday, mid morning, two suicide bombers targeted two locations in N'djamena, one the police head quarters and one the police training school. Senseless acts of terrorism that not only killed 23 people and injured over 100 but has now instilled a level of fear into the hearts of all those living here in the capital. (Please read more here).

Boko Haram had said they would attack because Chad has sent forces to work alongside Cameroon, Nigeria and Niger. It is widely believed this is the work of Boko Haram. Whether the attacks stop here or continue, only time will tell.

All MAF staff, both national and international are safe and well although obviously shocked and saddened by what has occurred. N'djamena is a very small city and so everything is so close. There is now a huge lock down in the whole city and the security forces are restricting movements and access to many areas of the city. This is obviously understandable but not sustainable as so many areas of the city are closed off. Today the airport was closed to all vehicles which meant to get the the MAF hanger and office all staff had to walk about a 15 minute walk past the security barriers in 40 degree heat. 

For the next few days we are being advised to restrict all our movements, especially with children. The government has just declared three days of mourning and so we are expecting an extended period of lockdown in the city as many of the funerals take place. 

Please join us in praying for peace in this city and in the country as a whole. 

Thank you to all those who checked on us and have sent messages. 

May 2015 newsletter