Last week, we helped two missionary friends host a rather large team in South Africa. We combined it with a trip to check our mail, buy some car parts, and get some prescriptions filled. We ended up crossing the border on a Sunday and it was crazy. The crossing that normally takes about 1/2 hour took about two hours. They had put up a new sign in 'no man's land' that got our attention. There is alot of emphasis on the upcoming games in South Africa for the world cup (soccer) and there is a big scramble for the tourist dollars. This particular sign highlights the danger of trafficing of people. The scramble for work is intense and sometimes people send their children south with the promise of money being sent back, only to find they have send their children or loved ones into horrible situations. We starting to hear more about this horrible practice - there seems to be no end to the inhumanity of man to man (or woman).
One of the highlights of this short trip was when one of the cars we were driving with this team broke down in the middle of lion country. We're in the absolute middle of no-where and the car won't start, won't jump, just won't go. Plus, it was an automatic so we couldn't push start it. We had 16 people on this team and 16 different ideas about how to do this! My friend Jason had a clear head and simply took the battery out of a push-able car (even with the trailer!) and put it in the automatic tranny car, and with some wiring adjustments, we got everything going again. Neither of us had brought a good socket set with us, so it was a bit challenging, but you certainly have to be flexible. But, it turned out well and we didn't have to tow anyone! The team had been in Mozambique helping with a Bible college and it was a great opportunity for us to share what OMS is doing in Mozambique as well. They were a great group of people and we really enjoyed our time together.
We brought a load of Chronological Bible Story Telling books back with us to use in our church multiplication program. At the border, we had to explain what they were for and give some away but because we don't charge for them, the customs agent finally let us bring them in. You never know what you will face at the border. But, we had a few hitch-hikers that came with the boxes and we've been trying to rid the car of roaches ever since. Yuck!
We're facing a new delimna. Our passports expire this coming summer, but our resident visa expires in March. So, if we turn in our passports with our visa applications, Mozambique won't want to give us the one-year visa because our passports will expire before the visa. If we try to get our passports renewed early, the US doesn't like that. So, we're not quite sure how to skin that cat. So, we're making an appointment with the embassy to see what they suggest. My how the time is passing quickly! We look alot older than those 10-year-old photos in our passports!
On Saturday, I met with Belarmino about our upcoming training center construction project in Mocuba. He had just returned and we're working on a plan to start the work after the rainy season - probably in late January / early February now. While we were meeting, we had a diversion to fix some broken pipes at the Khongolote church well. They have a number of area homes plumbed in to the well (they are running a little utility company!) and I thought some of my engineer friends might enjoy this view of the manifold. We would like to move this manifold into a better location that is easier to work on, but those kind of things you do when extra money appears. This is working fine, but what happens is when kids play ball in the church yard, sometimes the ball goes into the hole and they step on things getting the ball back. It was a great day for me - I always enjoy hands-on things and always enjoy time with Belarmino. Now, if I can just figure out why the oil pressure gauge isn't working on the car and which wire goes where (the mechanic who fixed the starter disconnected the oil-pressure sensor and it's a bit of a wiring nightmare!).
Blessings!
"When you find yourself deep in a hole, stop digging!" Anonymous
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