Annual Pentecost

(Photos: The crowd at the picnic; One of Peter’s first smiles)

It was a year ago that we went on a picnic to the north of the island with the international church members. They have an annual celebration for Pentecost and go up and have a picnic and a soccer game every year. This past Sunday we were able to do it all again.
It’s interesting to think about how much has happened in a year. Although the venue was the same and much was familiar, things felt different. Last year we knew very few of these brothers and sisters, now we know many by name and can speak to them in the island language. A year ago Grace was being dipped gently in the ocean. Now Peter gets the gentle treatment while Grace practices swimming with her swim ring. A year ago our team consisted of 6 people. Now our new teammates were mingling among the group and everyone was having a good time.
There were some exciting differences this year too. Some new faces—local brothers—joined us. One even went for a special dunk in the water! We sang new songs, including singing some praise songs in the island language! And then at the annual soccer match against the local town, our group squeaked out a win in an exciting overtime shoot out! It seemed like everyone had a good time. The game was very clean and the good feeling and love between peoples of different places and faiths was noticeable. There were some bright lights shining in that village!
The only downside was the travel. People will tell you that the place we visited is far away. Well, 40 miles may not seem like a long way, but it can be extremely long on a bad road. We average about 20 miles an hour once you take into account all the potholes. But we bounced all the way up and then all the way back and everybody is doing okay. We woke up Monday morning feeling a bit tired, but the Sunday experience was worth it.

PRAYERS ANSWERED
Megan has recovered from Dengue fever and is feeling good. We went to the doctor for a follow-up visit and he said her incision is looking much better. We are very thankful that everything has been calm and peaceful this week. Now we hope that there can be a peaceful transition of government in the coming months. One of Tom’s students wants to start storying with him. They will start next week.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
June looks to be a very busy month for our team. A lot of people are traveling, we will have lots of visitors and students will begin vacation (which usually means we have many more visitors). It’s also getting close to the time for weddings. Pray that we would be able to keep up and trust not in our own strength but His strength. We are in the process of finding a pediatrician for Peter so that he can get his vaccinations. This is more of a hassle than it might sound.