Showing posts with label missions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label missions. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

I Have Seen God


I Have Seen God
Klaus-Dieter John
(Monarch Books)
ISBN: 978-0857215741
October 2014/288 pages/$16.99


The miraculous founding of a top class hospital for some of the world’s poorest people

Klaus-Dieter and Martina John–both brilliant, talented, and highly qualified doctors–turned their backs on lucrative careers to follow their dream to open a first-rate medical facility for the Indians of the Peruvian Andes, some of the world’s poorest people. The Peruvian Andes natives suffer appallingly from the diseases of poverty and, although they make up approximately 40 percent of Peru’s population, are ignored by the authorities.

Having studied at the universities of Harvard, Yale, and Johannesburg during his training as a surgeon, Dr. Klaus-Dieter John together with his wife, Dr. Martina John, a pediatrician, developed a concept for a modern hospital in the Peruvian Highlands.
Turning down other offers, including a professorship, they set themselves the task of raising the millions of dollars needed. God opened the hearts and consciences of individuals and companies to create not just a health center, but a fully equipped hospital. Their story and vision has captured attention around the world and today they have the backing of 180 corporations and 50,000 private supporters.

The hospital’s name, Diospi Suyana, means “we trust in God” in Quechua, the native language of the people it serves. It is a testament to their experience that with God the impossible can happen. The incredible conviction and profound faith of the Johns will refresh your heart and stir your spirit.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Klaus-Dieter John studied at the universities of Harvard, Yale, and Johannesburg during his training as a surgeon. He and his wife Dr. Martina John, a pediatrician, have dedicated their lives to the establishment of the hospital in Peru.


MY THOUGHTS

Having a family member who was a career missionary in South America, I was particularly interested to read this book and it did not disappoint. This is a fascinating account of a couple called to serve God as medical missionaries among the poorest population of Peru and how they built a modern hospital through donations of time and materials and amazing interventions by God. A beautiful testimony of faith and commitment to the cause of Christ, this stirred my heart. I am grateful they have translated this best-selling German book into English for those of us in the USA to read and be encouraged - and maybe even humbled as sometimes I think we believe we are the only ones who have been called to "go and tell." (My one slight disappointment with the book is that John did not share a bit more of the personal struggles of those involved. He alluded one time to some interpersonal conflict among the missions staff, but it was an isolated incident and he did not detail the resolution. While the purpose of the book was to highlight God's movement, I wish John had depicted that power among the lives of his fellow missionaries, who are flawed and human.) I highly recommend this book. It will encourage and inspire you.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received an advanced copy of this book free from Monarch Books and Litfuse Publicity as part of a blog tour. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”



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Friday, July 19, 2013

Adopting the Father's Heart


Adopting the Father's Heart
Kenneth A. Camp
(WestBow Press)
ISBN: 978-1449794866
July 2013/162 pages/$13.95

Adopting the Father’s Heart is a vulnerable and challenging look into God’s call to orphan care through one couple’s experience with adoption. Kenneth and Danielle were on a path to return overseas as missionaries when God redirected them—at least, temporarily. Both felt God leading them to foster children with the possibility of adopting. How did they start the process? What were the challenges and the rewards? Their story informs, convicts, and inspires others to care for the orphans in our communities.

“As a pastor who is trying to lead my church into ministry in the foster/adopt world, I am thrilled to have Kenny Camp’s book Adopting the Father’s Heart as a resource…I’ll make it required reading for both staff and volunteers who work in our foster/adopt ministry.” Dr. Will Davis Jr., Senior Pastor, Austin Christian Fellowship

Read an excerpt.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kenneth A. Camp and his wife, Danielle were licensed to foster and adopt in January of 2011. Kenneth has served on church staffs as a youth pastor and most recently as a missions pastor. Kenneth currently blogs about missional lifestyle, including orphan care, at KennethACamp.com.

In 2007, he and his wife lived in Thailand for six months as missionaries. While in Thailand, Kenneth and Danielle volunteered at a local children’s shelter. It was through these experiences that they both formed a passion for the orphan. Even though they never had children of their own, their motivation to foster was not solely based on that fact.

Kenneth and Danielle live outside of Austin, Texas, where Kenneth enjoys reading, playing basketball, and building community.

MY THOUGHTS

Informative, highly practical, and authentic in sharing both the ups and downs through the process of fostering and adopting a son, Adopting the Father's Heart is an invaluable resource and source of encouragement. While it is obvious that those who are navigating the fostering/adopting system (or considering it) will benefit from this book, the impact is much broader. Anyone who knows a fostering family will have a new understanding of ways to come alongside that family to provide support and encouragement in tangible ways. Adopting the Father's Heart is as much a spiritual journey as a familial one. Camp's open and, at times, gut-wrenchingly honest testimony of his journey will challenge readers to evaluate their own hearts and attitudes toward the least of these. Highly recommended!


I had the privilege of attending Kenneth A. Camp's book launch party and purchased a copy of this book. I am pleased to provide an honest review.



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Monday, February 25, 2013

Yielded Captive - A Don't Miss + Giveaway!

UPDATE Sunday 3/3/13 WINNER

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
5
Timestamp: 2013-03-03 22:28:31 UTC

Congrats to Megan Parsons! Email me your address, Megan, and the publisher will mail you the book.

* * * * *
In mid-January, a young missionary wife and mom who had seen my blog contacted me about her new novel, asking if I would consider reviewing it. To be honest, I generally avoid such requests as I am usually swamped with reviews for mainstream publishers and publicists. However, the premise of this book intrigued me, and after previewing the first chapter, I was hooked! I am delighted to tell you about it today and offer you a giveaway. Additionally, after I finished reading the book, I emailed the author some questions for a mini-interview, which is also posted below.


Yielded Captive
Dalaina May
(BottomLine Media)
ISBN: 978-0985219239
January 2012/364 pages

Lord, this was not how it was supposed to end.

Allison Carter had dedicated her life to being a missionary in the jungles of Peru. Now she was being dragged into an unknown future by the very people she had come to reach.

They had attacked without warning or provocation. With her infant son in her arms and her husband, Eric, lying face-down with an arrow in his back, death seemed preferable to captivity in a primitive tribe with customs and mindsets alien to her own.

But Allison had to stay alive—if only to protect Isaac—to raise him to fear the one true God...

...that same God who had allowed her to suffer so much?

Stubborn as she was in resisting her abusive captors, Allison’s greatest battle was not with them, but with the God she thought she knew.

Why did He not rescue her? Where was He in her suffering? Could He still be trusted with Isaac’s and her future?

Download a sample chapter here.

Available on Amazon and B&N ($12.08), on CBD (10.49). Also available on Amazon for Kindle and iBooks (5.99).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dalaina May lives with her husband, Dan, and their four rowdy boys in the jungles of Peru, where they serve on a church-planting team among the Caquinte tribe. Dalaina spends most of her time dragging her children out of trees, embarrassing herself in front of her neighbors, and blogging about her family’s life and ministry at DanandDalaina.com. When she has a free moment, she appreciates good sushi and a back rub.


MY THOUGHTS

Occasionally a book comes along that is so compelling and so good that I can't get it out of my head. Such is the case with this novel. From the opening pages I was absolutely caught up in the heartrending story of Allison's captivity by the Shampiri tribe of Peru. More than just a captivating tale, however, this book will cause you to examine faith far beyond the pithy and rote "Thy will be done" prayer so glibly prayed. What does it really mean to sacrifice all for the cause of Christ? How much might God ask of us to further His kingdom? Allison's prayers and struggles during her captivity are authentic and poignant. . .and how God's presence and purpose induce her obedience and perseverance will inspire and convict. I highly, highly recommend this novel.


This book particularly struck a chord with me because of my sister's years serving as a career missionary in South America. I so wanted to sit down and have a mocha with Dalaina May after I finished reading this book. I'm still mulling it over in my mind more than a week after I have finished reading it. I was delighted when Dalaina agreed to answer a few questions to provide a "mini-interview" for my blog today.

A MINI-INTERVIEW WITH DALAINA MAY

You stated that Yielded Captive "was born out of my experiences living in our tribe." Can you elaborate on that a bit? I assume you haven't had anything as drastic happen to you as happened to Allison. How did writing the story impact you as you vicariously lived through Allison's situation?

The Shampiri tribe of Yielded Captive is fictional, however many aspects of their culture and language are based upon the culture and language of the tribe that my family lives and works with---the Caquinte. (If you are curious what is real and what is made up, here is a link to a document with the details.) While I thankfully never had the traumatic experiences of Allison, many of the things that I have observed and heard about while living in the jungle are very similar to her experiences with the Shampiri. In many ways, writing about what was going on around me was the perfect way to process what I was experiencing.

Has writing always been something you aspired to? Do you have plans/desires to write more books?

While I don't think I identified myself as a writer until a few years ago, looking back I can see that I've always had an interest in it. When I was a kid, the computer game "Oregon Trail" came out. My friends would play and race to the end of the game for the win. I, on the other hand, would take weeks to finish a game because I spent more time in the journal and making up a story to go along with the game... "Jed died of dysentery today, and my heart is shattered. What will I do without my boy? We are going to rest at the Snake River for a few days to bury him and grieve."

I know writing will always be a part of me. It's how I think and how I decompress. It's often how I worship and learn. It's is also a lot of fun. Currently, I am working on a humorous, non-fiction book about raising my four rambunctious boys in the jungle. They provide copious amounts of raw material, and I have been having a great time remembering all the crazy stuff they have done. Whether or not it gets published, it will be a treasure to be able to present to them when they are older.

How isolated are you and your family as you serve the people of this primitive tribe in Peru? How many of the Caquinte have become believers? Are they relatively open or are they hostile like the experience Allison had?

Our village is very remote. The only way to get in is to hike through the jungle or to fly in using a small airplane (We use a missionary aviation ministry to fly in.). Our village has between 300-600 people in it at a time, depending on the season as people travel to their distant gardens frequently.

The Caquinte are in many ways similar to the Shampiri, but in one way they are very different. That is they are traditionally farmers and not warriors. The men use bows and arrows for hunting, but they are not taught to use them as weapons. Actually, the tribe was nearly wiped out a few generations ago when they were attacked by another tribe and really had no good way to defend themselves.

There is a tiny church with just a few believers (I would say maybe six true believers at this point.). Seven years ago, there was a newly finished New Testament, but no one to teach it. Our team was invited in by the chief and the church to teach the leaders of the church so that they could in turn teach and minister to their people. Overall, we have been very accepted and loved by the Caquinte. There have been some that are ambivalent about our presence, but over the past few years, we have been accepted as neighbors and friends in the community,

As someone whose sister was a career missionary, I know that missionaries are "regular folks" who deal with some of the same things - including spiritual struggles - that we all do. How do you find refreshment and encouragement and fellowship?

Writing! Haha!

Actually, we work with another family, and they are a huge part of our support system.They are priceless especially on those days when I just want to throw in the towel. I can go to my teammate's house and tell her, "I hate this place. If I see one more flying cockroach, I am going home." She can handle those emotions and understand my frustrations.

I am also endlessly grateful that my husband saw the wisdom in the expense of solar-powered, satellite internet. We did not have it the first year we were in Peru, but now that we do, I wouldn't want to live without it. Being able to Skype with my family, regularly communicate with supporters, and keep up with my friends back home has probably saved my sanity many times over. It is worth every penny!

What message do you want readers to take away from Yielded Captive?

It's worth it to walk with God no matter the pain that might be involved in that journey.



GIVEAWAY!

Dalaina's publisher has graciously offered to give a (paperback) copy of this book to one of my readers. To enter, leave a comment on this post by 8:00 pm CST Saturday, 3/2/13, and I will randomly draw a winner. US mailing addresses only, please. You must include an email address if you do not sign in to Blogger to comment so I can contact you if you win. Winner will have 48 hours to respond after notification or another winner will be chosen.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received an e-book copy of this book free from Dalaina May and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”


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Thursday, June 21, 2012

Faith in the Midst of Pain

Many of you are probably familiar with the names Jim Elliott and Nate Saint, two of the five missionaries who were killed in Ecuador in the 1950's.

Or you may be more familiar with Nate Saint's son, Steve Saint, who has produced several movies about their story and the years since then, among them End of the Spear. (If you aren't, I highly recommend them!)

Steve Saint has spent many years in Ecuador among the Waodani people, the group who murdered his father and the other four missionaries, and a number of them are now believers. Saint has also developed a company/ministry called I-TEC (Indigenous People's Technology Education Center. According to their website,
At I-TEC, our focus is on enabling indigenous churches to overcome the technological and educational hurdles that stand in the way of their independence. Missionaries have long understood the value of technology, and they have employed every available tool to preach the gospel — from the machete to dental equipment to airplanes. But advanced technology is often impractical for use by a native church, where even the lack of electricity may be a concern. We aim to bridge that technology gap by equipping the indigenous church with technology suitable to their needs — technology that they can use and maintain with minimal outside support.

I had never heard of Steve Saint's company until a few days ago, and my purpose is not to endorse or garner support for this company, only to comment on the commitment that this man and his family has had for missions and for indigenous, difficult-to-reach peoples and to give background for his current situation.

Last week, Steve Saint was testing a piece of equipment when a safety strap malfunctioned and the item hit him in the head, causing whiplash and severely injuring him. He's had minimal movement of his arms and legs. Through it all, he has continued to demonstrate incredible faith. In fact, a statement Friday said that "Steve has asked that we not pray for God to take his pain away, but rather that God will continue to write this difficult chapter His way."

Monday, he filmed this statement from his hospital bed. It is so touching and inspiring to see his unswerving commitment even while acknowledging the extreme pain and difficulty he is experiencing. He has a long road ahead.



On Tuesday they operated to relieve some pressure on his spinal cord. An update yesterday from the family said,
Steve came through his surgery very well. One of the biggest things for him is that he does not require his neck brace. He was able to stand up on his feet for about a minute this morning, with help. This is just the start of the long road ahead, but we know that he is a fighter and hard worker. By the beginning of next week, he should be moved into an in-patient rehab facility to begin intensive physical therapy. Please continue to pray for Steve and Ginny, as well as the rest of our family and care-givers as we continue this journey together to see how God will use this for our good and His Glory.

What a testimony. Please pray for this man and his family as they walk this road.

Updates are available on his Facebook page


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Sunday, December 4, 2011

I'm Tithing My Blog

This post was originally written by Jessica Dotta for the Inspire a Fire blog, and I’m participating in author Gina Holmes’ call to tithe my blog by copying here.

We have much to be judged on when he comes, slums and battlefields and insane asylums, but these are the symptoms of our illness and the result of our failures in love.” -- Madeleine L'Engle

When my brother traveled to the Sudan he had an encounter that changed his life—and as it ends up, mine too.

He stood in Darfur at an orphanage filled with children leftover from the genocide. There were over 800 children, and during the night wild dogs were dragging them off and killing them.

My brother already felt shell-shocked from the travesties he'd witnessed in Uganda.

The day was hot. The sun beat down upon him. His camera had nearly been ruined from all the dust. He'd barely slept. His gear was heavy. Yet his conscience was seared by the numbness he felt, so he turned and confessed to a Sudanese pastor.

"We shall pray right now that your heart will be opened," he was told.

Not long after that prayer three young children approached Joshua and started to follow him. After a bit, his father nature kicked in and he stopped and sang Father Abraham. It didn't take long before the four of them were dancing and going through the motions.

When they finished, he asked the children to tell him how they came to be there.

The oldest, a girl, answered. "The soldiers came and shot my mother and father, so I came here."

The two other children nodded in agreement. "Me, too."

He was grief struck, but it was what transpired next that tore my heart. "Do you have a Mommy?" The little girl asked my brother.

"Yes," he answered.

"And a Daddy?"

Again, his answer was yes.

"Oh," she said, her voice hinting at a strange intermingling of numbness and grief.

Her question stirs me still. For I believe it came from her soul and revealed the thoughts of her heart. She didn't want to know what his country was like, what kind of food he ate, or what he did for a living. She had her own bullet holes leftover from the genocide. Her world consisted of this single question: Who still had parents and who didn't?

In her questions I heard her worry and fear. Imagine being trapped in a war-torn country, a land of famine, drought and disease. Imagine trying to survive it as an orphan with death threatening you every hour. No matter how much she's endured, at the end of the day, she's still just a little girl. And all she really wants is her Mom and Dad.

I imagined my daughter living as an orphan in the Sudan. If I were shot and dying, it would be my hope that my brothers and sisters would care for her. But what if her aunts and uncles were killed too? What was it then, that her parents hoped?

As members of the body of Christ these children are not alone. They have aunts and uncles. Multitudes and multitudes and multitudes of them. Talk about staggering! These kids are our nieces and nephews! Mine. Yours.

So who, I wondered, within the church has the responsibility to step in?

I didn't like the answer that came. Earlier that week I was shocked to learn that globally I was one of the richest people in the world—even though as an American, I'm pretty poor.

Like it or not I was the rich aunt. I had knowledge of the situation. That made me accountable.

I wasn't comfortable with the knowledge then, and I'm not comfortable with the knowledge now. But I am determined to do something. Anything.

That day Joshua had in his possession a picture book that someone had asked him to give to someone in the Sudan. It was a children's book with a story about how we have a Heavenly Father who always loves and cares for us. Joshua read the book and gave it to them.

An American woman took it upon herself to raise the money to build shelter. Every person who donated, even a dollar, helped to create a place where the little girl now sleeps safe from wild dogs.

When Joshua told me he's going to start a branch of Watermelon Ministries called Media Change, a non-profit encouraging Americans to give up a portion of the money spent on entertainment to serve those fighting world hunger and thirst, I wanted to support it.

For seven years he's helped non-profits raise money that serves the "least of these." He's seen the impact a small investment can have. This is a brand new initiative. He's not quite ready to launch, but you can sign up and be kept updated at www.mediachange.org. His first goal is garner the support of 10,000 people who are willing to give $10 a month. I'm number #3.

This is only a blog post, but who knows what one blog post can do.

What if the task of helping others isn't as overwhelming as we make it?



Jessica Dotta, Sr. Editor of Inspire a Fire, has earned the right to wear the title of: Social Media Specialist, Consultant, Publicist, Brand Manager, Editor, Writer, Social Activist, and Business Manager. But the only titles that matter to her are: Called – Redeemed – Beloved – Known by the Father – Daughter – Accepted. . . and Mom. Her life has recently undergone a shaking—one that uprooted nearly every trace of her former life. You’ll have forgive her unconventional posts, as she’s still trying to work out her perspective. She knows one thing though. The most humble and worthy person she ever encountered lived in near obscurity—but sent ripples of change into the world. All because he took the time to care about each hurting person he met. He wasn’t Jesus, but he followed the Great Shepherd and left a legacy. She wants to follow that path.

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UPDATED TO ADD: Linda popping in here - As indicated at the top of the post, this is a guest post by Jessica Dotta and is written in first person by Jessica. The experiences are those of her brother, not mine.


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Thursday, April 14, 2011

The Grandfathers - This DVD Will Bless You


The Grandfathers
(EMG)
Rated PG-13/Runtime: 48 minutes
Click on title to purchase

The Grandfathers showcases both the burden and benefit of the Saint family’s legacy. Jesse Saint, Steve’s oldest son and Nate’s grandson, was not raised among the tribe like his father. He struggles to find his place under the weight of the memory of a famous grandfather he never knew and a heroic father he does not fully understand. This will all change after Jesse travels to the jungles of Ecuador with his family and gradually forms a special bond with Mincaye, one of the tribesmen who took part in his grandfather’s murder. Only then will he confront his family’s past and come to terms with his own destiny. And there he will find his place in this story.

The Grandfathers chronicles the personal quest for greater connectedness and significance. It is also a moving tribute to ordinary people living extraordinary lives in extreme situations. Jim Hanon, the film’s director, states, “Forgiveness is an awe-inspiring virtue that seems to have been passed on by the Saint family and is shared by many among the Waodani tribe—both demonstrate a profound capacity for forgiveness and healthy self-healing.”

Steve Saint consulted with Jim Hanon and Mart Green, EGM’s producer, to help bring the story of his father, Nate, to screen through the feature film End of the Spear and the companion documentary film Beyond the Gates of Splendor. These films trace events leading up to and including the deaths of these men. More than that, they show the impact these events played on the lives of both their survivors and their killers. When the widows and their children went to live among the Waodani—a tribe regarded as the most violent on earth—they became an integral part of an incredible redemptive journey.

The Grandfathers completes a trilogy produced by EthnoGraphic Media (EGM) that includes End of the Spear and Beyond the Gates of Splendor. These first two films, also from award-winning director Jim Hanon and producer Mart Green, tell the unforgettable and inspiring story of the killing of five missionaries by a stone-age tribe deep in the Amazon jungle. The impact of this tragic event lives on today in families of these slain men as well as among those responsible for their deaths.


This inspirational film has been awarded The Dove Foundation seal of approval, receiving its highest honor. In the review, the Dove Foundation praised The Grandfathers, calling it “amazing and soul-touching.” Read the full review here.

EGM is an educational nonprofit organization exploring the critical issues of our time through film and new media. It is a community of visionary writers, artists, and filmmakers that seeks to capture true stories of compelling virtue that speak to the human condition. Visit www.EGMfilms.org.





MY THOUGHTS:
Although I generally review books, I was pleased to have the opportunity to review this DVD. Since I was a child I have heard the story of the brutal murder of the five missionaries, among them Jim Elliott and Nate Saint, at the hands of the Auca tribe in Ecuador, and we have the first two movies in this trilogy. Additionally, my sister just this week is packing up her things after almost 25 years of serving as a missionary in Ecuador, although she has not been in such a remote area as the one where the Saints have lived and ministered.

This is an absolute tribute to God's grace, redemption, and restoration. I loved the comment Jesse Saint made about Mincaye, who is one of the ones who killed Jesse's grandfather, Nate, back in 1956. "Even though it was the same man, the same hands, it was a different heart." What a powerful testimony to transforming power of God's grace. As I watched this, especially as I saw the response to the first showing of the Jesus film in their native language, I was so convicted of how blithely and flippantly we treat the cross, our salvation, and the Bible.

And though I have heard it before, I was once again captivated by the account of what those who killed the five missionaries witnessed following the massacre: the air filled with music and singing and light spilling out of heaven.

My only "dislike" of the DVD is, I'm sure, simply a reminder that I am no longer of the young and hip generation! I didn't care for the combination of the graphics with the live action camera. It gave the movie a rather disjointed feeling to me. But I'm glad I persevered and watched it and I urge you not to let that keep you from being blessed by the story as the third and fourth generations of Saints continue to reap blessings from the seeds sown and watered by the blood of those who answered God's call to go into all the world, whatever the cost.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this DVD free from The B&B Media Group as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”


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Monday, March 28, 2011

This Still Makes Me Smile!

Yesterday our Missions Pastor had a couple of adults and teens give brief testimonies/recaps of the mission trip to Progreso we took over Spring Break. My girl and GG were two that had the opportunity to share.

Before I get to their stories, I learned an extra tidbit about those teen boys who walked 30 minutes to come to VBS on Thursday that made that even more special. One of our teens guys (an incredibly mature 8th grader potentially headed for the ministry) who shared yesterday said that the day before, the guys said they weren't going to come on Thursday. J (our teen) was really burdened and said he prayed a lot for them Wednesday night. When our vans came back to the church with the neighborhood kids and the boys weren't on it, he was so disappointed. So seeing them walk up a few minutes later and discovering they had left home even earlier than the van would have picked them up to walk to VBS was a huge "Wow God" moment for him!

My girl talked about having the opportunity to be part of a home visit to share with a woman who is the grandmother of one of the little boys in her VBS group and then how he made a decision the next day when she shared the gospel during VBS.

GG shared about the experience of doing the manicures and pedicures and what a challenge that was, particularly because she has a "thing" about touching anyone's feet. Then she talked about how neat it was to share her testimony with the ladies during that time. "I was translating it in my head from German to English, and the translator translated it from English to Spanish. It was so cool!" She said it really demonstrated to her how powerful God is.

Powerful, indeed. And what a blessing to have a front row seat to watch Him work in these young lives!


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Monday, March 21, 2011

The Week in Progreso

Wow. Last week's mission trip to Progreso is one I will remember and ponder for a long time to come. It's hard to even know how to begin to describe the varied experiences, both from a spiritual and emotional standpoint. As with many trips of this nature, there were highs and lows. Parts of the week were a real struggle for me for personal reasons which will remain unstated on a public forum. Yet God worked in those to minister to me through times of sweet fellowship with others on the trip.

A huge highlight of the trip was watching my girls absolutely glow as they experienced God moving and using them. My girl was able to share the gospel several times and experienced the power of prayer like never before. And GG described it "as the best week of my life" (along with her salvation and baptism) as she learned to serve, share her testimony, and pray in a group. It was a joy to watch them and the other youth grow in leaps and bounds.

Here are a few pictures to give you a "snapshot" view of the week:

One of the girls at VBS with her craft from day one: she chose to write Jesus vive (Jesus lives)


Painting the bookshelves some of our church members had made for us to bring for the book fair.


One of the girls copying a verse at VBS on Tuesday morning.


Tuesday afternoon we had a Ladies Salon at the Community Center and ministered to some of the "weariest" women by giving them pedicures and manicures, along with a bag of goodies (including a Spanish Bible) to take home. Several of our teen girls helped with this and described it as one of the most challenging (read: disgusting!) yet fulfilling things they had ever done. I was so touched by their maturity in serving "the least of these."


On Wednesday afternoon we had a book fair and about 25 families received a pile of new and used books, both in Spanish and English, including Bible storybooks, a reference book to use when their children are sick, and the Gospel of John, along with the bookshelves (personalized with their children's names). Here a brother and sister proudly display some of the books they have chosen.


The gospel presentation at VBS. I love this visual. Black cherry Kool-Aid mixed with water is poured into a glass of water to show how black our hearts become when we sin and don't have Jesus in our lives. Here she is getting ready to pour "Jesus" in to show what happens when He comes into our lives.


The kids all gasp when the black instantly disappears, showing how he purifies us and takes away our sin. Even though we sin after we become a Christian, we are still seen as spotless because of Jesus; when she pours a little more of the Kool-Aid mixture into the jar she purified, it doesn't turn black. (The jar representing Jesus contains Clorox.) We've done this illustration at our church VBS a lot and it is always a hit. I've heard about it for years but this is the first time I've actually seen it done.


My girl wanted to bring this 5-year-old boy home with us!


The four boys to the left of the teacher and closest to the van are teens who had ridden the van several days to VBS. Thursday they weren't there when the van went by to pick them up, and we were disappointed that they weren't coming. A little while later they showed up at the church. They had WALKED 30 MINUTES to come to VBS!


It took several days but I finally tracked down my friend Laura that I met back in 2008. She was so active in the church back then. I had asked her two married daughters about her after church on Sunday and they were vague but said she was fine. Her kids didn't come to VBS, and God placed such a burden for her on my heart. Wednesday I talked to the pastor through our interpreter and he told me she has had some marital struggles and has drifted a bit. So Thursday afternoon I and another of the ladies from our church, along with my girls and one of the teen boys and the intern who was our interpreter for the week, drove to her house hoping she would be there. She was and we had a sweet reunion. We gave them one of the bookshelves and some books. Here my girls are personalizing it while the boys look on.


And here is Laura and her family. The little girl she is holding is her granddaughter, and the two boys on the left in the black t-shirts are her grandsons. The others are some of her ten kids. The taller boy in the cap is Ernie, who played the accordion in the service when we were there in 2008.


I showed Laura the picture on my phone that I had taken in 2008 and told her I wanted another one of the two of us, so here we are. She speaks very little English but when we were about to leave, she grabbed me, looked me straight in the eye and said "thank you very much" -- I could tell it was from the depths of her soul. I told her that I had been asking about her (and her daughter had told her that someone was looking for her as well). How I pray that God uses the fact that I sought her out to minister to her and show her that He is seeking her as well.


After we got back to the encampment where we were staying Thursday afternoon, we had a little bit of a break before heading to the community block party we were sponsoring. Um, some of us had a bigger "break" than others. Several of the youth had an impromptu basketball scrimmage and my girl came down and twisted her foot and so she and I had a little side excursion before the block party. It appears she has a hairline fracture on her right foot. The irony is that last year on her mission trip to Guatemala she broke a finger. This year it's a foot. (At least it doesn't hamper her music!) Next year she is eagerly anticipating the Junior-Senior mission trip to Thailand. I would really like a doctor or nurse to accompany her! And she feels called to missions as a vocation! Either she needs an organization with great benefits or she needs to marry a doctor!


When we got back to the party, a grandmother had brought her granddaughter who has Down's syndrome. My girl has such a heart for special needs kids so they immediately bonded. My girl painted a rainbow on her face and then they headed off to the playground area together. I love this picture.



We got home Friday evening and Saturday was filled with grocery shopping and laundry and piano lessons. Then I continued my statewide tour of Texas ERs: my man had been helping a friend build a shed and prune some trees on his retirement property and, in spite of wearing a hat and glasses, a branch whipped across his face and gave him a pretty bad corneal abrasion. So we spent a couple of hours Saturday evening in the ER as soon as they got back. My friends have asked if I'm either a) a secret shopper for ER's or b) getting frequent flyer miles, and have also suggested I not let my boy leave the house since he's the only one of our original family that is unscathed!


I hope you had a great week last week - I had to just delete the 450+ blog posts in my reader. And since first thing this morning I have my PT treatment, an orthopedic appointment to make, and an eye doctor to call, plus issues to handle regarding my sister, I'm not sure exactly when I'll be around to visit you! Have a great Monday!


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Monday, March 14, 2011

Spring Break on Mission

As you read this I am on a church mission trip in Progreso, way down at the tip of Texas (but on this side of the border!) with my girl and GG. They have both been so excited about this trip. Our church has been sending teams to Progreso twice a year for the past four or five years and has developed relationships with the folks in the community and the tiny but growing Baptist church in the community. My girl and I have been before, back in the summer of 2008 with our youth. She is looking forward to seeing if she remembers any of the kids from that trip, and I am looking forward to seeing sweet lady that I met. GG is just excited about her very first mission trip. I'm praying that it will be a wonderful week and that it is another hallmark experience in her new life with Christ.

I do have a few posts scheduled for this week, so keep checking back. Besides being busy, there is no internet access where we will be, so I won't be visiting any of you until I get home next weekend.

Have a great week!


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Sunday, December 12, 2010

Booked for the Holidays #8 and a Review





  • City of Tranquil Light by Bo Caldwell - featured below
  • I'll Be Home For Christmas by Julie Cannon - With Bing Crosby's "I'll Be Home for Christmas" playing in the background, Maggie Culpepper and William Dove proclaim their undying love to one another. But with the U.S. at war and Maggie's personal home front under attack, the Southern belle impetuously joins the WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service). When Christmas draws near and Maggie finds herself miles and miles away from her Georgia hometown...and her beloved William...will she realize that, no matter where she spends Christmas, home is where her heart is?

Leave up to three comments to enter, confirm you are a follower, and confirm the BFTH button is posted on your sidebar! You can read the rules for entering and claiming prizes here.

And now for a review of City of Tranquil Light.


City of Tranquil Light>
Bo Caldwell
(Henry Holt and Co.)
ISBN: 978-0805092288
September, 2010/304 pages/Hardcover/$25.00


Bo Caldwell’s City of Tranquil Light (Henry Holt and Company), is a searing love story of a man and a woman, their God, and the country they jointly loved and a deeply researched and page-turning portrait of a country in utter turmoil. The story is based on the lives of her maternal grandparents who were missionaries in China in the early 1900s. For years her mother had urged her to write about them and when she dove into the research, she found their lives full of conflict, danger, and heartbreak, as well as joy and fulfillment.

Will Kiehn is seemingly destined for life as a humble farmer in the Midwest when, having felt a call from God, he travels to the vast North China Plain in the early twentieth-century. There he is surprised by love and weds a strong and determined fellow missionary, Katherine. They soon find themselves witnesses to the crumbling of a more than two-thousand-year-old dynasty that plunges the country into decades of civil war. As the couple works to improve the lives of the people of Kuang P'ing Ch'eng— City of Tranquil Light, a place they come to love—and face incredible hardship, will their faith and relationship be enough to sustain them?

Told through Will and Katherine's alternating viewpoints—and inspired by the lives of the author's maternal grandparents—City of Tranquil Light is a tender and elegiac portrait of a young marriage set against the backdrop of the shifting face of a beautiful but torn nation. A deeply spiritual book, it shows how those who work to teach others often have the most to learn, and is further evidence that Bo Caldwell writes "vividly and with great historical perspective" (San Jose Mercury News).


MY THOUGHTS:
Although this is a fictionalized account, this book contains many events that really happened in the lives of Bo Caldwell's grandparents. This is a beautiful and inspiring story of a husband and wife who dedicated their lives to spread the gospel in a hostile land and who deeply loved God and each other.


A CONVERSATION WITH THE AUTHOR: (from the publicist)

It’s been nearly ten years since your first novel, The Distant Land of My Father, was published. What took you so long?

That’s a question I’ve asked myself. Part of the answer is that life intervened. I started the novel in 2002 and wrote perhaps 80 pages, and although I didn’t like them much, I’ve come to accept that mediocre first drafts are often part of my process. In 2004 I was diagnosed with stage-one breast cancer (I’m now healthy and cancer-free), so that fall and the first half of 2005 were given to chemo and radiation. It took another year for my head to clear enough to write fiction, and I returned to the novel in 2006 and finished it two years later. The other part of the answer is easy: I’m a slow writer, something I’ve made peace with.

City of Tranquil Light is based on the lives of your grandparents who were missionaries in China and Taiwan. Where did you draw the line between their experiences and the fictional characters of Will and Katherine?

The biggest difference is that, unlike my characters, my grandparents had five children. I chose not to deal with fictional children because they would complicate what felt like an already complex story. Also, my grandparents lived in five different cities in China and worked in Taiwan after the communist takeover of China. I had my characters settle in one place so that I wouldn’t have to keep rebuilding cities, and I chose to have my characters stay in the U.S. once they returned because I wanted to focus on what leaving China meant for them, on aging, and on their marriage. Finally, while my grandparents’ lives were certainly the primary inspiration for the book, I was also inspired by the lives of other missionaries, and I incorporated parts of their stories as well as my grandparents’. The line between what really happened to any of these people and what I made up or exaggerated is already blurry, and, in my experience, will become more so as time passes.

China has played a large role in both of your novels. What does the country mean to you?

China represents a connection to my childhood and to my family. It’s where my grandparents lived most of their lives and where my mom and her siblings grew up. Family dinners with my grandparents were always Chinese food, and I used to help my mom make chiaotza—steamed dumplings—when I was little. All my aunts and uncles knew how to make them. Everyone in my mom’s family had at least a couple of pieces of Chinese furniture in their homes, and my grandparents had many Chinese items. So in a weird way, there’s also a connection for me between China and home, although I’ve never been there.

In the book, you create a richly detailed vision of China in the early 20th century. Can you tell us about your historical research into this period of Chinese history?

I’m not a fast researcher, but I’m thorough, and I learned much more than what appears in the novel. I started with historical books about China, mostly from the library and used bookstores, then read biographies and autobiographies of missionaries who’d served in China, many of whom my grandparents had known. These books presented history through a narrower lens. I saw how historical events had affected specific individuals and places, which made those events more real and immediate.

How did you decide to tell the story from two different points in time?

Trial and error. The first draft was entirely in Will’s voice, and early readers said the story needed more of Katherine, for which I am very grateful. Someone also mentioned the word journal. At first I thought her journal might appear all in one section, but once I started writing it I began interspersing it and enjoyed the dialogue that began to take shape. And I learned that rather than echoing or contradicting what Will said, Katherine could enlarge upon it and expand it, which appealed to me.

Will and Katherine’s faith brings them together and gives their lives both challenges and purpose. Did writing about their love and faith have any impact on your own marriage and/or faith?

Writing about Katherine’s decline made me value the present with my husband. We’re both healthy and (relatively) young, and I hope we have lots of years ahead of us. But writing about Will watching Katherine’s decline caused me to be more grateful for what we have now. And yes, the novel affected my faith strongly. When I started it in 2002, I tried to imagine my grandfather’s faith and to portray it accurately, but when I returned to the novel in 2006, after chemo and radiation, I no longer wanted that distance. I came to believe that although it was riskier to write about my own faith and what was in my heart—instead of hiding behind my grandfather—it was also more worthwhile.

City of Tranquil Light tells the story of two extraordinary lives filled with hardship and joy. What did you learn in writing about those lives?

I learned about the cost of marriage, which I first saw with my parents. My mom and dad were married for 56 years, and when my dad passed away in 2000, I watched my mom lose him then begin her life without him. She was very brave, and although the way in which she did that was remarkable, it still broke my heart. When I read biographies of missionaries, I saw one spouse or the other go through the same thing: this devastating separation after decades of companionship. But I also saw them survive it, as has my mom, and go on to live good lives. If you marry and are fortunate enough to grow old together, one of you will lose the other. But people survive that, and they even thrive, despite that great loss. That inspires and encourages me.

Do you think you could endure the hardships your grandparents endured?

My gut response is no—I love the comforts of home—but we endure what we have to endure, don’t we? I’m also not sure I could have stayed as long as they did, and remained so faithful to a calling. But I don’t think my grandparents knew they could do those things, and although I haven’t endured anything like they did, I’ve surprised myself by the ways I’ve gotten through some challenges in my life, and that’s something that excites me. We don’t know how we’ll be in a crisis. We often respond in ways we never dreamed we would, or could, which is a fact that gives me hope.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Bo Caldwell is the author of the national bestseller The Distant Land of My Father. Her short fiction has been published in Ploughshares, Story, Epoch, and other literary journals. A former Stegner Fellow in Creative Writing at Stanford University, she lives in Northern California with her husband, novelist Ron Hansen.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from The B&B Media Group as part of their Blogger Review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”


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Tuesday, November 9, 2010

The Marvel of It All

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old...or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

You never know when I might play a wild card on you!


Today's Wild Card authors are:


and the book:

Hannibal Books (August 15, 2010)
***Special thanks to Jennifer Nelson of Hannibal Books for sending me a review copy.***

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:


Joe E. Tarry was born near Lovington, NM, and his wife, Leona, was born in Fort Sumner, NM, but considers Portales, NM, to be her hometown. Joe graduated with a double major and received a bachelor of arts in religion and history from Eastern New Mexico University and a master of divinity from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. Leona also attended Eastern New Mexico University, during which she worked at the Portales Daily News; she then received a certificate from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. Joe and Leona spent nearly 3 decades as missionaries in Brazil, and are now retired in Ruidoso, NM. Joe has written numerous books, including, Did Paul Approve of the Tongues Spoken in Corinth?, Created to be Spiritual: Understanding God’s Daily Battle with Satan for the Hearts and Minds of His People, and Jesus Restores True Spirituality: Understanding Satan’s Subtle Schemes to Hamper the Testimony of Christ’s People. This new book, The Marvel of It All, is Joe and Leona’s first co-authored book.


Product Details:

List Price: $34.95
Paperback: 542 pages
Publisher: Hannibal Books (August 15, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1934749907
ISBN-13: 978-1934749906

AND NOW...THE FIRST CHAPTER:


Our Journey to a Foreign Land



For whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?

(Rom. 10:13-15).





The Marvel of It All

Have you been impressed in such a way spiritually

That you have stopped, lingered in meditation recently

Long enough to be enamored, thrilled, or stricken in awe

About the Heavenly Father, the Lord Jesus,

and the marvel of it all?



Many occasions are in the entire Holy Bible—

In fact so many that it is factually undeniable—

In which individuals or peoples were amazed

and overwhelmed

When they felt God’s mysterious presence all around.



They reflected on their experiences with God and pondered

About life, God’s grace, His power and glory, and wondered

As to their purpose of life and management of resources

in their hands,

Also of the mysterious and spectacular things

they did in the land.



We finally were standing on the deck of the cargo/passenger ship Del Norte. Each passenger held thin, colorful paper streamers that flapped in the breeze as the ship began to move. The captain seemed to enjoy blowing the deep bass foghorn to announce the ship’s leaving the New Orleans harbor. The multicolored streamers began to flow instead of flap in the breeze as the throbbing engines gained momentum. We finally were participating in the Del Norte’s departing ritual from the North American continent. Figures on the dock grew dimmer until they were unrecognizable. We were saying goodbye to our country, our lifestyle, and our friends and loved ones that we did not expect to see again for five years. At the same time we felt a mixture of joy and loneliness. Most of the passengers would return in a month, so for them this was not as great an event as this journey was for us. Time had arrived to turn our minds to the future.



Three new missionary couples and 10 young children finally were on their way to Brazil, the land they would adopt for their new home. Three-month-old Charlotte Tarry and 11-month-old Jonathan Richardson seemed to be excited about whatever was going on and all the attention they were getting from everyone on the ship. Bill and Kathy Richardson from Oklahoma and Missouri had four boys; Billy and Noreta Morgan from Memphis, TN, had two boys and one girl; and we—Joe and Leona Tarry from New Mexico—had two boys and one girl. God had joined together these three families to add to the South Brazil mission, the largest of all Southern Baptist mission groups in the world, with more than 300 missionaries including their children. Our mission goal was to help bring more Brazilians to Jesus Christ as soon as possible in a country that was ripe for the harvest.



Traveling by ship posed some concern for safety for those of us with small children. One danger was found in the heavy, thick doors to our rooms. A disaster could happen if a door closed on a finger or a child. The second danger was the deck. The parents were warned not to allow the children on deck without supervision. Our son Jonathan loved to look over the side to see the water. We held his hand whenever we walked on deck. Then the third danger was found in the stairwells because of the swaying of the ship.



Although the ship principally was for cargo, the 150 passengers were treated royally; the trip was great. One other American couple, which hailed from Vanderbilt University, was on board with a boy and a girl. The husband was traveling to teach for a couple of years in a Brazilian university. On the cruise children were the main attraction, because most of the other passengers were older; many were grandparents. Some were appalled that we would take our precious children to live in a third-world country.



Many of the tourists enjoyed the drinking, dancing, movies, and parties. We missionaries spent the two weeks getting to know each other and playing games after the children were in bed. We found that we all were different in some ways. The Morgans believed that breakfast was not complete without grits. Since they were told that Brazil didn’t have grits, the Morgans had packed some with their household goods. One night Billy expressed amazement that peanut butter was on the breakfast trays. “Who would ever eat peanut butter for breakfast?” I replied that my kids and I use peanut butter with toast and jelly as well as with pancakes. After that Bill Richardson and one or two of his boys learned to eat peanut butter for breakfast. Bill’s favorite expression was “Great day!” That expression rubbed off

on us.



We missionaries tried to get acquainted with others on the ship so we could witness to them. We played shuffleboard, swam in the small swimming pool, and participated in a few other activities.



The ship’s captain granted permission for us to have worship services on the two Sundays at sea. One of those Sundays was Easter. Billy or Bill preached, I led the singing, and Noreta played the piano. We had good attendance. A Jewish lawyer gave each of us men $10 to buy a flower vase for the first mission that we started in Brazil. On Easter each child received a big, beautiful basket filled with goodies. That afternoon the children had a special party.



The biggest event on a South American cruise is a special party planned by the social director when the ship crossed the Equator. At the initiation as pollywogs all participants were to wear costumes or to do something silly for the crowd. Leona had an Indian dress (which at the time was popular in New Mexico). My sons, Carl and Jonathan, and I took off our shirts and I painted our bodies and faces as Indian warriors, even though the boys’ hair was blond. We prepared Charlotte’s carrier as a cradle board; I carried her on my back. Crossing the Equator makes one a pollywog.



The meals on the ship were fabulous. The noon meal was a buffet on deck; we ate as a family. At night babies were not allowed in the main dining room, so an attendant took care of Charlotte. The evening meals were planned around a theme of a different country, with decorations and the food that corresponded to the country chosen. Even the waiters’ costumes followed the theme. Birthdays and wedding anniversaries were commemorated with a special decorated cake presented to the honored guests. Everyone but me enjoyed the food. Most of the two weeks aboard I was sick. The ship’s doctor, a retired military man, thought what I had might be appendicitis; however, I did not have a fever. This was so unreal—the one time I had the opportunity to dine on delicious, fancy food, most of the time I could only eat soup and ice cream. While we were on board the ship, Leona and I celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary, but the servers mistakenly took the cake to another couple.



The ship stopped for one day in San Juan, Puerto Rico. I went to a doctor for a second opinion to make sure my problem was not appendicitis; then each of the three families rented a Volkswagen. Billy had the map and planned our trip. All the street signs were in Spanish. At one point Billy turned onto a one-way street but did not know we were traveling the wrong way. At the end of the street we had to turn right; a police officer jumped into the street. He waved his hands and blew his shrill whistle. The officer was shaking his fist at Billy as Billy zoomed around the corner. When the officer saw that the car wasn’t going to stop, he jumped back up onto the sidewalk. Suddenly the officer realized another car was traveling down the street the wrong way. Bill could not let the Morgans get out of his sight, so he buzzed past as the officer in disbelief waved his hands frantically. We had no idea where we were in the city and couldn’t risk getting separated from the others. Leona and I also didn’t want to miss the ship, so we, too, blared past the officer, who at that moment may have swallowed his whistle in amazement. In seconds three Volkswagens had defied him and left him dazed. Our tour was cut short; we returned to the ship. We all were thankful to be back on the ship and sailing out of the harbor without having to answer for our actions.



The ship stopped for a short visit on the gorgeous island of Barbados. Some of us took taxis to a very beautiful beach to swim for about three hours.



The Stress Test Before We Sailed

I tried to understand why I was unable to eat the delicious food. I remembered the stress we had in getting everything ready. The months after our appointment on June 17, 1964, had been hectic. The Foreign Mission Board (now International Mission Board) wanted us to sail for Brazil in September, but we had girls’ and boys’ camp to supervise and unfinished plans to be completed for the church. First Southern Baptist Church in Porterville, CA, was to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Leona was expecting our third child in January, so the next sailing in December was too close to the due date of our baby. The next sailing date after that was the first part of April, so we made plans for that departure date. We made our plans to leave Porterville the third week of December so we could visit with our families for Christmas. Staying until December 1964 enabled us to complete three-and-a-half years at the church.



Packing our things to ship to New Orleans, LA, was hectic. Not that we possessed so much, but the FMB had given us an allowance to buy necessities such as a refrigerator, mattresses, a washing machine, a dryer, and a few other things. Based on projections for the next five years we bought clothes for the children. We stuffed most of the clothes into the box-spring mattresses. Getting these things crated and getting paperwork done for our visas was pressing, since we also had activities to finish our ministry in Porterville.



We celebrated Christmas in New Mexico with family. We visited my father in Lovington, 90 miles south of Portales. A widower since my mother died in 1942, he had reared his five children and now was alone; we needed to spend time with him. As we waited for our daughter’s birth, we visited relatives in the area and got documents together for our trip. The paperwork done in California for our visas was not valid, because with our move to New Mexico we now needed to go to the Brazilian consulate in Houston. We had a frustrating snag in getting police clearance from Roosevelt County in New Mexico. Since Leona’s dad, Mr. Isbell, had lived in the county for more than 25 years and was a well-known farmer, we thought the proper law-enforcement agency would be the county sheriff. The recently elected sheriff did not know us and was not sympathetic with our problem. Leona grew up in the county, but we had been out of the state for 6 1/2 years. The clearance from the California police department did not mean anything to him. He refused to give us a clearance because we had not been in New Mexico long enough to establish a record. The fact that we had been in California for seminary and that I had served as pastor of a church there did not matter. His attitude was obnoxious. When she arrived home, Leona shed tears of dismay and frustration. Since the sheriff rejected us, Mr. Isbell suggested that he go with Leona to the city police department. The chief had known the whole Isbell family for years and knew of Joe because he had been to the university in Portales. The police chief had no problem in giving us the police clearance.



Charlotte was born on January 25, 1965, in Portales. Five weeks later she became sick with a cold. We took her to our doctor on Monday. Dr. Coleman examined her and told us she had a virus and that antibiotics would not affect it. The only thing to do was let the virus run its course. We watched her and often used a syringe to clean her nose of the thick mucus. On Wednesday she was not better, so we took her back to the doctor. He told us we could put her in the hospital but said the people there couldn’t do more for her than we could. We just needed to watch and keep her nose clear with a syringe. The thick mucus made breathing or nursing difficult.



Dr. Coleman was the Isbell family doctor; he knew that Mr. Isbell was a farmer and had welding equipment for repairing broken farm machinery. The doctor told us that in the worse-case scenario we were to use Mr. Isbell’s oxygen tank. Later the doctor said that if he had realized how seriously ill Charlotte was, he never would have allowed us to return to the farm 10 miles in the country. We know that even at that point God was directing. This was the first of March; the nights still were cold. The house didn’t have central heating, so we slept on a hide-a-bed in the living room in which the gas stove was situated.



All day Leona had been taking care of Charlotte. At about 11 p.m. she asked me to watch Charlotte while she got a little sleep. With every intention of staying awake I laid Charlotte on my chest. Somewhere around 1 a.m. I realized I had nodded off; Charlotte was not breathing. In her face she had no color of life. My commotion awoke Leona; her first thought was the oxygen tank. She ran to her parents’ bedroom door, knocked, and asked her dad for the oxygen tank. He immediately dressed to go get it. I gave Charlotte to Leona and ran to the telephone. I was so frustrated that I could not find the doctor’s number. I knew Leona could find it faster, so I took Charlotte. God guided me to give Charlotte rescue breathing. I put my mouth to her tiny mouth and blew, but the air would not go in. Her lungs were blocked. I blew more firmly but still saw no results. I blew still a little more firmly. Suddenly the obstruction moved; air went into her lungs. The Lord oriented me not to blow too firmly because of her tiny lungs.



By now Leona had Dr. Coleman on the phone; he gave us three options. He could travel to the farm, 10 miles out of town; we could take her to the hospital and meet him; or he could send an ambulance and he would meet us at the hospital. Leona thought the last suggestion was best. Mr. Isbell arrived with the oxygen tank; Dr. Coleman gave instructions on how to use it by giving a phrase of instruction at a time. Leona repeated each phrase for me to hear. He advised me to hold Charlotte up close to the oxygen tank. Mr. Isbell was holding the tank; Mrs. Isbell was praying and watching. I was to gulp the oxygen and blow it into her mouth.



Meanwhile Leona was at the door waiting for the ambulance. She could do nothing but pray and wait. She poured her heart out to God as she presented our case. We gladly had answered the call to go to Brazil. We were on our way to be missionaries. Why was this happening to us? Our prayers had been answered when God gave us a girl—our family was complete! Charlotte was such a beautiful little baby! “Why, oh why, God is this happening to us?” Leona prayed urgently. “Besides these things, oh Heavenly Father, you know what a difficult time I had in my pregnancy and delivery! God, you know my pregnancy with Charlotte was more difficult than with the boys. Then I had thrombophlebitis. You cannot take our baby!” The Lord gently guided Leona to a calmer understanding of the situation. What if Charlotte lived but as a vegetable without the mental capacity to ever do anything for herself? Leona finally was able to surrender Charlotte to God. She concluded her prayer by saying, “Lord, she is Yours more than ours. Your will be done.” At that moment a great peace swept through Leona’s entire body. I think this might have been the moment that Charlotte began giving the first signs of life.



After I started giving Charlotte rescue breathing, I thought she would recover quickly. Five minutes passed without a sign of life except her body accepting the air. Ten minutes passed; still nothing happened. Fifteen minutes passed; she was still and silent. I remember that my back and arms began to ache because the oxygen tank was only about four-feet tall at the air spout, so I had to elevate my arms a little to get her body near the spout. I am amazed that I did not stop trying. God gave me the calmness and determination to continue blowing oxygen into her mouth. Twenty minutes passed, then 25. Finally Charlotte gave a tiny moan or groan, so I stopped and looked at her face. Her eyes fluttered but then closed again. I put my mouth to hers and started blowing oxygen again. About that time the ambulance zoomed past the house even though the porch light was on. Leona could not believe it! Who else at 1 in the morning would have on house lights? Soon the ambulance driver realized he had passed the house and returned. Charlotte was getting stronger, but if I stopped, she could not breathe alone.



Moments later the paramedics rushed into the house. Suddenly one paramedic saw we were standing near the stove; he immediately was horrified. He screamed, “Get that fire out! Get that fire out! What do you want to do, blow up the whole house?” He partially was right. In our confusion about Charlotte’s condition we were standing right in front of the big propane gas stove while the oxygen tank spewed out oxygen. Even though one could see the fire, the flame was enclosed. That did not matter; the paramedics were frightened. If the flame had been open, none of us would have been around to tell this story. The Lord had protected us. The paramedics placed a tiny mask connected to a small oxygen tank over Charlotte’s nose. As she received the pure oxygen, Charlotte’s color began to improve. We rushed to the hospital.



Charlotte’s hospital room was next to the nurses’ station. They put our daughter in a tent that had oxygen blowing in. The next day at noon she stopped breathing again. Leona pressed the panic button; the nurses ran in alongside Dr. Coleman. At that moment of our crisis Dr. Coleman had just walked into the hospital. He was prepared to do a tracheotomy on Charlotte but worked on her first and got her past the danger again. He remembered a new medicine that in that hospital had been used only two times. This medicine was named “mucomist” and worked to loosen and dissolve the mucus. As this new medication dripped, the oxygen blew it into the incubator. It formed a mist for Charlotte to breathe. Three days later we were able to take Charlotte home. She had a hoarse cough that Dr. Coleman said probably would continue until warm weather arrived, but as far as he could tell, she would be normal. Because of her weak situation the doctor wanted her protected from germs as much as possible.



Later Dr. Coleman told a close friend of ours that the night we called, he didn’t think Charlotte would survive; he said he wouldn’t have given a dime for her life. I personally think that she died and that God gave her back to us. I do not tell this for any reason other than to praise God for His special blessing to us. Our confidence in God’s ability to do anything He desires became a reality. We were not special people just because we were willing to go to Brazil. We are no better than others that have suffered the death of a child and for whom God did not answer their prayers. God is a just God; unworthy as we were, God chose to give Charlotte back to us. Our daughter graduated from University of New Mexico and from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth. For seven years she and her husband, Jim Whitley, served as missionaries in Romania with the Roma (Gypsies) before the Whitleys transferred to Brazil to work with the Gypsy people. They have twin daughters and a son. Praise the Lord!



The day after Charlotte was put in the hospital, we were supposed to be in Houston with our documents so we could visit the Brazilian consulate to get our visas. I called the consulate, which graciously gave us more time. A week after Charlotte left the hospital, by train we took her from Clovis, NM, to Houston. She enjoyed the rocking train. The Brazilian consulate officials were kind and sympathetic about the cause of our delay, but the situation rushed them to get the visas ready for our departure date.



One week before the date for our departure from New Mexico, I called the Brazilian consulate; it could not confirm whether it could get the documents to us. We began to be concerned. The passages had already been bought for the voyage on the Del Norte ship. We did not want to miss it. Our train tickets from Clovis to New Orleans went through Houston. On Friday morning I called the consulate to see whether the passports had been mailed. The passports were ready but had not been mailed. Another miracle! The consulate agreed to allow Kenneth Wise, a Houstonian who had been Leona’s classmate in Portales, to pick up the documents. We called to ask him to pick up our passports from the consulate and to meet us at the train station on Sunday. Again, in this development, we saw the hand of God working.



On Saturday afternoon we left Clovis, NM. When we arrived in Houston about 10 on Sunday morning, Kenneth Wise was on the platform and waited for us with our passports. Trusting that this plan would work we had gone by faith. We didn’t know we would have to go to a different train station to continue our journey to New Orleans. Kenneth and a taxi took us and all our luggage to the other train station. We arrived in New Orleans and found two taxis to get us and the luggage to our hotel. We were making our way up the sidewalk to the hotel just as the Morgans and Richardsons were leaving for a stroll. With these two missionary families we were to journey to Brazil. This was not just a journey to Brazil but a life journey of Christian love, fellowship, and experiences.



Yes, God was present with us all along the way, to the most minute detail. Now more than 45 years later I still have my appendix. I began to understand that I have a very sensitive nervous system and that emotional stress can show up in various parts of my body, especially my stomach, even though I think I am calm. One thing I really enjoy is eating, but under stress my digestive system does not accept food. Despite all that wonderful food on the voyage to Brazil I could eat only ice cream and soup.



Arrival in Brazil

Late in the afternoon of April 21, 1965, we were advised that the ship was entering the famous Rio de Janeiro harbor. We were eager to set our feet on Brazilian soil. As the passengers stood on the deck, one could hear exclamations of ooh’s and ahh’s. We had a clear view of the spectacular panorama of the world-famous Rio de Janeiro Bay. Corcovado, the great statue of Christ the Redeemer, towered over the area. To the right and below was Sugar Loaf Mountain, also a famous landmark of the bay. The famous Copacabana beach also became visible as we neared the dock. The background of towering rugged mountains, bluish and green in color, made a spectacular panorama for the gleaming maze of skyscrapers that crowded right to the docks.



The ship was to be at this port only until midnight. Our destination as missionaries was further down the coast, about 200 miles south to the Port of Santos. The missionaries in Rio had planned a welcome and get-acquainted meal at the South Brazil Seminary dining room. At that time about 20 missionary couples were stationed in Rio de Janeiro, because the all-Brazil mission headquarters, the largest of three seminaries, the Baptist publishing house, the women’s training school, and other Brazilian Baptist organizations were situated here. The Morgans, Richardsons, and Tarrys—all except for me—were taken to the seminary. Missionary colleague Dr. Lester Bell took me to see a doctor at the Evangelical Hospital. That was some ride! By the time we left the ship, darkness was setting in. As he drove, Dr. Bell zoomed in and out of the crowded lanes just as the Brazilians do. Motorists don’t use their headlights at night unless they want to warn the approaching car of some maneuver. Dim streetlights represented all the light they needed. Anyway, I had never seen such a ride—nor was I prepared for it. Dr. Bell didn’t try to scare me, for he was a very kind and considerate man. I later learned how to drive in the Brazilian traffic, too; doing so simply became natural. But that ride did not lower my blood pressure any. The doctor assured me that I did not have appendicitis. Whatever the problem was, I would just have to live with it.



By the time Dr. Bell and I returned to the seminary, the meal and most of the welcoming celebrations were over. The mission treasurer gave each of us three new couples a package of money. We all became instant millionaires. Inflation was so bad in Brazil that our monthly salary in their currency was worth more than a million cruzeiros. We were taken back to the ship. By the time the kids were in bed, the tugboat had pulled the Del Norte far enough into the bay that the powerful engines could be turned up into a dull, throbbing noise. Forward progress began; the loud bass foghorn began its ritual of warning the ships and fish that we were picking up speed and leaving Rio de Janeiro Bay.



“Last call for breakfast; last call for breakfast,” the steward called as he rang a little bell in his hand. As the steward’s voice faded down the corridor, I remembered that this was the last day aboard the ship. Because of our small children we missionaries received our breakfast in our rooms. Joy and anxiety raced through my body and mind as I thought of reaching our destination. The other missionary families on board seemed to experience the same feeling. Not that we were complaining about our ship, because Southern Baptists provided us with an opportunity that we might never have again. With high-class food, excellent service, and time for leisure, why the anxiety? Well, appointment service, two weeks of orientation, getting physicals, getting proper shots and documents for passports and visas, buying clothes and even Christmas presents for a five-year term in Brazil all were exhausting. Add to that the crating process to ship all these things while we were busy completing the plans on the church calendar. We packed and moved to New Mexico things that we didn’t want to take to Brazil. We had three months with our parents as we waited for Charlotte to be born and for time for our ship to leave. We had two weeks on the ship, which should have been restful, but I began to feel my nerve fibers pulling. We were ready to settle into our new location. We were not accustomed to being unsettled so long. And of course we were eager to be in the land God had laid on our hearts to serve Him.



On this last morning a birthday party was planned for Carl. Carl’s 5th birthday really was the next day, April 23, but the ship’s social director had planned a party for him before we reached Santos. Carl had a birthday cake and several presents the ship’s social department provided. The attendant that cared for Charlotte each evening during the dinnertime was very good to us. She gave us a box of baby bottles and a box of baby food that had been bought for Charlotte.



As we descended the gangplank on Friday, about 30 language-school missionaries, including their children, met us. We three men would return to Santos on Monday with a veteran missionary to begin the paper work to get our things out of customs. We ate our first Brazilian meal at a restaurant. The first thing the waiters brought was a drink unfamiliar to us. Everyone was drinking the same thing: Guarana. I examined the label on the bottle and read champagne. My heart sank! I could not believe that my Baptist colleagues could sink so low as to drink champagne. When they poured their drinks into their glasses, white foam rose to the top. I put mine down with the resolution not to drink it. Soon some of them started laughing. They explained that it had no alcoholic content. Guarana is made from the Guarana berry and is perfectly harmless. Well, that became a favorite joke the Tarrys later played on visiting guests from the States.



The language students took us to a beautiful beach and made a full day out of the trip to meet us. We had a great time on the beach, but the fun ended when jellyfish stung two of us. Darkness was setting in as we left Santos for Campinas. As we left the coast, we started climbing a curvy, mountainous road. We discovered a new custom: when a car wanted to pass, the bus driver turned off his lights. Our driver could see a little from the lights behind us and from the moon. By the glow of lights about to top the hill in front of us, the car behind could see whether another vehicle was approaching. According to the custom the driver felt safe to pass if he didn’t see any approaching lights. After the car passed, our driver turned his lights on again.



We arrived in Campinas about 10 p.m. Arrangements had been made for us to stay with Gene and Aleene Wise (brother of Kenneth Wise, who had helped us in Houston) when we arrived in Campinas. The Wises had not gone to Santos to meet us because Aleene was sick. They graciously welcomed us. Our assignment in Brazil officially had begun.



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