Bad News, Bad News, Good News, Outreach

Bad News

Before this weekend, we had two family dogs: Georgia our "guard dog in the making" puppy and Chisomo our sweet old German Shepherd. We asked you to pray for Georgia because she was accidently hit by our car, but we probably should have included Chiso in that prayer request. Saturday morning she got what is called a twisted stomach and rapidly went downhill. Before we got her to the vet, she had quit walking and by the time we got her to the vet, it was too late. So, Saturday was a sad day for the Roberts family, especially the kids, as they had to say farewell to Chisomo.

(Click here to read the full story)

Bad News

Things that you don't have to deal with in the States that we do here... The only refinery in Zambia ceased operations this past Friday. Apparently, the boat delivering the crude oil to the Zambia pipeline is idling in the Indian Ocean waiting on clearance to unload and, because of this, our refinery has run out of crude oil feed stock. We have trips planned to Lusaka in the coming weeks and this has the potential to mess these trips up. So pray for our oil supply.

Good News

In the midst of some bad news, there is some good. God is sovereign and in control of it all. He knows our needs and it pleases Him to provide us with the grace that we need to live and do ministry here in Chikankata!

Outreach
On March 31st, we will be holding our first Jesus Film outreach. The farm next door has a school and church that ministers to the community around us. We will be working with several members of their church to do this outreach. Next Saturday the 24th, Luke and I will be training their leadership team for the event. I'll be teaching on the basics of the Gospel and Luke will be teaching on our identity in Christ. Pray for our training and pray for this outreach!

Croc Tails?

Just something interesting you don't find in the States. Luke and I were in Mazabuka this past week doing some shopping and stopped in one of the local meat markets. In addition to selling the normal (chicken, steak, pork) they also sold other things that you might not find in the States. In particular, she was selling croccodile tails!

Seeing them packaged so nicely, we simply couldn't resist. So, Luke bought one of the bags and I bought the other. Well, last night when the power went off and we had to cook over our gas cooker, what did we decide to fix? You guessed it, Croc Tails. And what did they taste like, you might ask? You probably guessed it again, Chicken! Well, fishy chicken.

Anyways, just thought you would want to know about some of the "other" cuisuines we eat here in Zambia.

Update on Georgia

Thank you for praying for our family puppy. She is still hurting, but should be fine. The vet said that she bruised her siatic nerve, which caused temporary paralysis in her back leg. Nothing was broken and she's on the mend now.

An interesting thing did happen coming out of the vet visit though. Our vet is a Christian believer who also attends the church we attend. We were able to have coffee and talk for a few hours while I was there. One of the things we talked about was starting a bible study with some of the other men in the area. So, pray for that. It would be a great way to get to know some of our neighbors and encourage one another through the word.

Georgia

Small crisis this evening. Out three month old puppy, Georgia, was hit by a car - our car. She was chasing the car as Kerri was returning from bible study and got a little to close. It seems like she is somewhat ok. We think her back right leg was run over, because she can't put any weight on it. But we think she is well enough to wait for a morning visit to the vet. So, pray for Georgia and the kids that adore her!

FfF

This past weekend, we hosted Zambia's representatives for Foundations for Farming (Ben and Catherine Frampton from the UK). For those of you who don't know, Foundations for Farming is a Christian ministry that was founded in Zimbabwe, Africa. It seeks to empower the "least of these" in Africa with the ability to provide for important physical needs while also addressing the greatest Spiritual need of knowing and following Christ.

FfF is very excited (and vice-versa) about the potential for a partnership in our work here in Chikankata. So, it was nice having Ben and Cat for a visit to share strategies and dream big together. If you would be interested in learning more about Foundations for Farming, you can visit their website at: http://www.foundationsforfarming.org.

Bees

(Movet and Luke filling the sprayer with Bee Poison)

One of the things that we want to start here on the property is a small katemba (grocery store). The purpose is to provide, not only a job for the person(s) running the store, but to use the profits to provide more jobs for some of our neighbors here on the farm. We're very fortunate in the fact that the previous owner of this property outfitted a shipping container with shelves and even a back room that can be locked. They placed it on the back edge of the property and already used this container as a store in the past. So, we thought we would do the same.

But in order to get the store up and running, we had to deal with one minor issue: BEES! Apparently, underneath the floor of this container was a great place for bees to build a hive, a massive hive. So, this past weekend, Movet, Tyson & Luke got the sprayer and some poison and "went to town" spraying. I would have assisted, but it appears as if I might be alergic to bee stings. So, I kept to a safe distance.

Anyways, the container was sprayed and we think the bees that weren't killed won't return because of the poison that is still present. So, hopefully, very soon, we'll open the store!

Discipleship Through Composting?

One of the programs that we feel is going to be a big part of discipleship here in Chikankata is Foundations for Farming. It's built on 4 very basic but life changing principles: Doing things (1) on-time, (2) to a high standard, (3) with no wastage and (4) with Joy!

The third principle, no wastage, simply means being good stewards of the things that God has already given us. In this instance, materials for composting. This past Tuesday, Luke, myself, and three of our workers constructed our first of many compost heaps. It was made up from things you would naturally find in the wilderness (green plant material, brown plant material, sticks and other larger debris, & manure).

It took us nearly 3 hours to construct, but this one pile of compost can fertilize nearly 2 acres of land for an entire planting season. Pretty amazing huh?

And think about the implications for discipleship this compost heap provides. God calls us to be good stewards with everything He has given us, including dead plant material and animal poop ; )

What if we can get the Tonga people to realize just how much God has given them already and how that can be stewarded to provide so much more! Imagine a subsistence farmer who cannot afford fertilizer being able to produce his own from materials already present on his land. How would that change his view of God and his love for us?

God calls us to be faithful with everything He has blessed us with, no matter how little or how much. I can't wait to see the day when many of our friends here start looking, with joy, at what God has already put in their hands to provide for themselves, their families and their communities!

Jerusalem, Judea, ...

(Renee Reeve, Gracyn, Macie & Emma Whitfield on the Reeve's quad)

I think because it has been so long in the making that Luke and I are itching to get out into the surrounding communities and do some ministry. But before reaching to the utter most parts of Chikankata, we really feel like God might have us focus on Jerusalem (the Reeve's farm and their workers) first!

We've been doing a few things to build relationships amongst this community, but within the next week or so, we are planning our first outreach. We will be showing the Jesus film at our home one evening. We're hoping that this event will help us begin to learn who our neighbors are here at the farm as well as to introduce many of them to the gospel of Jesus.

In addition to this, we have also identified 8 young men who we plan on starting a more focused discipleship group. These young men have worked for us part time on occassion and are the same boys who have been playing soccer with Caleb and Thomas.

Please pray for us as we begin to reach out to our immediate community. Pray for this outreach event. Pray for wisdom as we develop relationships with these young men.

Our New Church Home

This past Sunday marked our fourth Sunday at Mazabuka Community Church. For those of you who don't know, this church is our sponsoring church for employment here in Zambia. Pastor Shawn Kelly has been a missionary here in Mazabuka/Chikankata for roughly 16 years and planted this church at a local polo club.

It's been a blessing having a place to plug into for spiritual feeding and development and it's been a great place to meet new friends. It's a little bit intimidating, because I haven't preached very often, but Luke and I have been asked to help out occasionally in preaching and Kerri and Elise will probably get involved with the worship.

It's a very neat little church in that there are people who attend from many different backgrounds. This past Sunday, there was an indian couple, many of the white Zambian farmers as well as some Tonga speaking Zambians. Kind of gives us a sneak peak of what it will be like when people from every tribe, tongue and nation will be gathered before Jesus in worship.

This coming Wednesday, Shawn and a few of the members are coming for tea at our home to visit with us and the Whitfields. Please pray that we will make lasting relationships in this community of believers. Pray that we could be an encouragement to them and vice-versa.

How Do You Shop For Your Veggies?

As we returned home from our two-day trip into Lusaka, we made a routine stop. It is the final turn-off before going to Zimbabwe where there are a bunch of street vendors. This is the same turn that I was at when the car broke down about a month ago. So, I know it all to well ; ).

Anyways, I sat there and watched Kerri and Elise buying some tomatoes and avacados and thought to myself: "You know, people in the States probably have no idea how we shop for our veggies here in Zambia." So, I took a quick photo.

In Zambia, there are many small shops like these called Katemba's. At these shops, you can find almost any fruit or vegetable that you're looking for. The ladies who work these shops will sit all day in hopes of finding a few customers to buy their produce so that they can then feed their families in the nearby villages.

Just thought you would want a peek into one of our routine experiences here in Zambia!

Afraid to Play

The other day as Luke and I returned from some meetings, the boys were playing football (soccer) in the yard with some of the older boys from the farm (guys we had hired for the day to help with the yard work). When they saw me pull up, they immediately stopped and the boys started walking for the gate. They told Caleb that they were afraid of the bwana (boss). They were afraid that I would be mad that they were playing in the property. I haven't done anything to cause them to be afraid, but, regardless, the fear was there.

Luckily, Caleb and Thomas were able to convince them to come back and we were able to watch a pretty spirited match. But the experienced just made me aware, all the more, of our need to go above and beyond to show these dear Zambians the love of Christ - to show them that there is no need to fear us. So, I guess I'm seeing a need for a weekly match with the "bwana's" also participating!

Lessons in Language

I don't know what they are trying to advertise with this sign. Maybe they are selling rocks that strike fear into the heart of every man! No, just kidding, it's just an opportunity to appreciate the various languages in Zambia.

If you haven't ever studied the Bantu languages, you probably wouldn't understand the sign above. Many times, in Zambia, when reading or writing in English, the letter "L" and the letter "R" get mixed up. For instance, Kerri is, a lot of times called Kelli. And in the case of this sign, Dread Locks becomes Dread Rocks.

Just thought you would appreciate the signage coming out of Zambian shops!

Meet Lucas Milambo

Lucas Milambo is the great nephew of Chieftainess Mwenda. He was born just a few days ago in Chikankata and named after our friend and ministry partner Luke Whitfield.

Today, we met with Chieftainess Mwenda to discuss future ministry plans in Chikankata. We were able to visit with her for over 2 hours and hear about her heart for the people of Chikankata. We were also able to make a little headway into finding the land that the ministry centre will be situated on. We were also able to meet her great nephew Lucas Milambo, named after my friend Luke. How awesome is that? Thank you to those of you who prayed for this meeting.

In the next few weeks, we hope to host a few key leaders from her family and community at our home for a cookout. We have a very good relationship with the chief, but we also desire to build relationships with those she knows and loves.

Please pray for this gathering. Pray for God's Spirit to be present in a way that helps us to establish lasting relationships with those we hope to work with and serve.

It's Contagious

Luke and I are in the city for a few days to do, you guessed it, car repairs. Our new car is almost sorted out, but it seems like the Whitfield car caught a little Roberts cold. Nothing serious, just some small issues here and there, but definitely something they didn't want to deal with in their first full week after returning to Zambia. Anyways, pray for them and us.

On a side note, we have a meeting with the Chieftainess early next week. We're meeting to talk about the land that the center for ministry will be developed on. We'll also be trying to setup a meeting with her rural development team. Pray for wisdom as we meet and pray for strong relationships to be developed with the members of the rural development team.

Grody to the Max

If you're squeemish, don't watch this video. I have shared with you a few times, that there is a fly here called the putsy fly. It is a special fly in that it lays its eggs on damp clothing and when the eggs hatch on their unsuspecting victims, the larve burrows into the skin.

Well, I've been waiting for the first person in our family to get the first putsy so we could videotape its extraction. Can you guess who the first victim was?

Excuse the video of me with my shirt off, but I took a video of Kerri helping me get one of the 5 putsy larve that have now found their way into my arm, back and leg. Apparently, we're going to have to wait until the others get a little bigger before we can get to them, because at this size they are just too difficult to remove. Oh, the fun stuff we deal with as missionaries in Africa!

If you are receiving this post via email and would dare to watch the video, please do so at: http://youtu.be/9CyW3MDqmTg

Late Anniversary Celebration

Because of all that we had going on with moving in and car issues and unpacking, etc. Kerri and I never had the opportunity to celebrate our 13th anniversary. So, since we were headed to Lusaka to pickup the Whitfields from the airport, we added another day into our trip so we could enjoy what we missed out on in January.

Just outside of the city, near the airport, there is a small safari lodge called Chaminuka. When you have 5 kids, celebrating your anniversary, a lot of times, just means getting away and doing nothing and that's what we did. We spent the day just lounging around, talking as well as going on a 2 hour game ride. The trip was exactly what we needed.

So, here's to being married to the best wife a man could ever ask for!

20 Years (Part III)

Up until now, I have shared about my life before Christ found me and the day that I responded to His calling by faith. But what about the next 20 years? (And no, don't worry, this post isn't going to detail the next 20 years of my life)

I'd like to say that the next 20 years were a wonderful time of growing in my relationship with the Lord, a time where I no longer struggled with sin (even some of the same sins that I struggled with before I became a Christian), a time where I was happy all the time and everything just seemed to go my way. But that would be a lie and that wouldn't be indicitave of what the Christian life is all about.

God's word is pretty clear. When I join His team, the pressures of life will only intensify because I have now joined a battle in the heavenlies. He never promises to take me out of the trials of life, but I do have something that I didn't have before I became a Christian. I have Him! I have His Spirit living within me to help me through the trials. I have His Spirit to bring to mind the things of Scripture that I need for this life and for my battle with sin, my flesh and the enemy. I have His Spirit to comfort me during the difficult times. I have the power of His Spirit for a life of ministry that brings glory to the Triune God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). I have the ability to approach Him in boldness and talk with Him in prayer.

So, yes, my life wasn't perfect after God invaded my life that evening in February of 1992. I had times of victory, I had times of defeat. I still made mistakes and will continue to do so, but I have a perfect Father who loves me unconditionally, who looks on me with favor, not because of what I have done for him, but because of Christ and his precious sacrifice on my behalf. My life, even though still messy, does show some of the fruit of His life in me. And after 20 years, I feel like I'm just now starting to understand His love, which in turn is helping me to love others. So, the trajectory of my life in Him over the past 20 years, while its had its ups and downs, has been one of slow and steady growth.

So there you go. That's the work that God started in my life 20 years ago and will continue until the day that I finally get to see him face to face. I hope what he has done in me can encourage you wherever you are in the process of knowing Him, whether it be that you're not a believer and are trying to understand this Christian thing better, or if you are struggling in your walk with Him or even if you feel like you know Him well and are growing daily in your relationship with Him.

God Bless!

20 Years (Part II)

On Feb 9th, 1992, a guy from a local Seminary, Nathan Hardeman, spoke to our youth group. He shared about how God had a plan from the beginning of creation - that he created the first man and woman to be without sin and in a close loving relationship with himself, they then chose to disobey Him and as a result died spiritually. Because of their sin, all mankind (us) inherited sin at birth and, therefore, we all stand guilty before God and unable to have a relationship with Him.

But God, being rich in mercy, still promised to restore His relationship with us through a sacrifice. Nathan shared how in the book of Hebrews it says that without the shedding of blood there can be no forgiveness of sin. And that Christ, God in flesh, came to earth, lived a perfect life, was beaten, spat upon, cursed, hung on a cross and killed as a payment for my and your sin. That three days after he died, he was raised from the dead to prove all of his earthly ministry to be valid and that he had done what he had promised, he defeated death. In addition to this, for 40 days after his resurrection over 500 people were witnesses to him living again.

He then shared how there was nothing we could do on our own to merit God's favor - that it doesn't matter how much good we do, because our goodness will never earn our forgiveness. Our only hope is in the person of Jesus Christ. If we place our trust in Him, trust Him with our whole lives, our decisions, our worries, our messups, our victories, our hopes, our dreams, our disappointments, our fears, with everything and if we lay our sins at His feet (repent) - the anger, bitterness, envy, jealousy, lust, immorality, hatred, evil thoughts, etc. we can be forgiven completely and restored to a right relationship with God the Father. So, it's not based on anything we do, but on everything Christ did. We are saved 100% by His grace (meaning we get something good that we don't deserve, for free).

After he shared, I had an intense burden to want this faith to be a part of my life. I still remember to this day, sitting there praying to God, "God, this is what I want. I'm tired of trying to live this life on my own. I need you. I need your Son and the forgiveness that is only offered by His blood shed on the cross." God had begun a process of calling me out back in December of the previous year and it was on this night (Feb 9th, 1992) that he brought me to a point of decision. As I prayed, I felt like this tremendous weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I literally felt a burning sensation in my chest and a feeling of intense joy swept over me! I now knew what forgiveness, true forgiveness felt like. I had nothing to offer God, I wasn't a good person (in fact, no one is). But God, by his mercy (not giving me something bad (hell) that I did deserve), reached down and made this dead boy alive!

Now what? (Part III, Wednesday)

20 Years (Part I)

February 9th, 1992, something amazing happened in my life that has changed me ever since. God called me into a relationship with himself. So, for those of you who don't know me very well, I figured I would give a short (maybe long) story about who I was before this date and who I have been becoming since.

To give you some history, I was the problem child and that's an understatement. I was the kid that no parents wanted their children playing with. Seriously, by the time I was 11 or 12 years only one kid in my neighborhood was allowed to play with me. I remember picking fights with just about every kid on the bus at one time or another. And it got so bad that my dad had to take time off of work to come stand at the bus stop to make sure I didn't get beat up.

Before I was 10, I would go into local grocery stores and steal various candies. At age 12, I was stealing cigarettes from my grandmother's kitchen cabinet in an attempt to try out smoking. At age 13, I was sneaking out of the house at night with other friends and vandilizing properties in the neighborhood. At age 14, I was sneaking out with the same friends and gathering in abandoned lots in the neighborhood to drink alcohol. Let's just say that if anything bad happened in the neighborhood, the security would show up at my house first to ask questions.

I was a kid with a lot of issues. I was angry all the time, lied to just about everyone just because I could and really gave my mom and dad a rough go at it. It wasn't because I had bad parents or a poor family environment. My parents were great and they always made time for me and my sisters. They were loving and cared deeply for each of us. I do have my speculations as to why I was so difficult, but this is not the time or place to get into such issues. The important thing to communicate though is that I was rotten to the core, dead spiritually, having no interest in God or His love for me! I was a broken individual, helpless to do anything for myself.

Then, in December of 1991, God began a process of changing me. It started with a visit to a close, close friend in Colorado. While there, I met this girl, who was a Christian. A girl who was so passionate about her faith that it rubbed off on other people. And a girl who, at the time, I was very much attracted to. It turned out that her family was moving from Colorado back to Florence, SC. And me, in my vanity, decided that if I had any chance to pursue her, I needed to be going to church to "Learn Up" on the things that Christians do so I could hopefully impress her enough to date long distance (1 hour apart) once she moved.

The girl and I never dated, but God did use that relationship as a stepping stone to get me into an environment where I could hear about His grace, mercy and love for me. As I started visiting a youth group at a local church, I started to see people who had a different heartbeat than me. Guys my age who wanted to talk about heart issues and struggles and older men and women who really cared about me. During the next month and a half or so, I remember God beginning to weed out some of the desires that I had previously had in my life.

One example: I remember sitting down at lunch one day with a friend from highschool and telling him that I thought I was going to wait until I was married to have sex. Remember, this was still before I had become a Christian. Needless to say, he looked at me like I was crazy, but looking back on that conversation, I can see that God was in a process of calling me to Himself, be it ever so gently.

(Part II to post Tuesday)

Connected

We've finally joined the rest of the world. After two months of typing / checking emails and updating our blog from the phone, we finally got connected to cyberspace. We were hoping that the phone companies internet would have been available and fast enough where we are, but they were not. So, we contacted the same provider that most of the farmers around us use, Pronet. They are a satellite internet provider. And for the low, low cost of $2,400 to setup and $300+ a month, we can now communicate with the western world!

We'll be splitting the signal and the cost with the Whitfields. So, it will at least be comparable to what we had in the city, but it isn't nearly as fast. No complaints though. We're just happy to be able to talk with family and friends via skype and keep up with what's going on in the world.

February 2012 Newsletter

Dear Friends & Family,

Here is our February newsletter. It is a special request concerning a situation we are facing here in Zambia.

Link: http://ia700806.us.archive.org/32/items/RobertsFebruaryNewsletter/Feb2012Newsletter.pdf

It's On The Way!!!

The day has finally arrived. Thanks to a whole crew of people (Margie Simmons - Christian Ministries International, Marvin Bozard, Chapin Baptist Church Combined Sunday Schools, Family and Friends) our container has finally been packed and left Columbia yesterday afternoon. It is now on it's 8,000+ mile journey to Zambia, Africa. Hopefully within a few days, it will be loaded onto a boat in the Charleston Port and be at sea for the month long voyage shortly after that.

Thank you so much to everyone who has been praying for this effort. Thank you for the many who sacrificed time and man power in packing, inventorying, and coordinating logistics of its shipping. Thank you to those of you who made financial contributions towards this effort as well. You have all blessed our ministry in ways that you might not every fully know.

We'll send pictures once it arrives and we figure out how to unload this 40ft beast. Much love and appreciation from the Roberts and the Whitfields.

Our First Lot

Today we got our first lot of baby chickens. Hopefully, 8 weeks from now, some of these little guys will be on our dinner table. Farm life, you gotta love it!

Putsie Flies

Things you don't encounter in the States. Our new family dog "Georgia" has been attacked by putsie flies. These flies lay their eggs on the skin of animals and sometimes people. When the eggs hatch, the larva burrow into the skin and stay there for several weeks until matured. They basically feed off of the tissues in the skin.

Once matured, they form an abscessed kind of like a zit. Except they don't pop when you squeeze. Instead, when you squeeze, a little worm pops out!!! So, tonight we squeezed out 4 larva. We're just hoping one of the kids or one of us gets any.

One Last Time

This past week I picked our car up from the mechanic hoping that it had been fixed enough to give us a few more months of driving before we had to find a replacement. As I drove it from the shop, it seemed a lot better. The shaking was gone, the exhaust was no longer black and cloudy and the brakes were no longer grinding.

Because it felt so good, I decided to press my luck and drive back to our home. The trip was rather uneventful until I passed Kafue and got out of cell phone coverage. It was then that the engine suddenly lost all its power and the car started sputtering. Now, being in the middle of nowhere without communication ain't fun, but doing it in the middle of the night is a little bit worse (I didn't get out of Lusaka until evening. So, it was really dark by the time I broke down).

Luckily, or should I say providentially, I was close to some local street vendors when I broke down So, I was able to use one of their phones to call Kerri and get help. But lesson learned.

It's kind of ironic. I was praying for wisdom on what to do with our car situation and God gave me His answer. When I looked under the hood, there was oil all over the engine and under the car. That coupled with the fact that the engine wasn't able to generate any power means that there is something really wrong. Translation - our car will most likely need a new engine if it is ever going to see the road again - something it's not going to get.

So, the Roberts are officially without a car. Please pray for us. Pray that God would give us wisdom in finding a new car for our family. Pray that he will provide all of the necessary funding for such a purchase. And pray for us as we continue to settle in here and start this new ministry.

Thank you

A Successful Hunt!

One advantage to living here is that sometimes the boys get to go hunting for our dinner. The Reeve’s, our landlords, have a son who is Caleb’s age. So, a few times over the past couple of weeks he has invited Thomas and Caleb. This last time, Caleb had a successful few shots. Now we just need to learn how to cook them.

Discipling Young Women

Living where we live, we have opportunities for ministry right in our back yard. For the past two weeks, Kerri has been meeting with a group of girls from the farm. Some of them are our workers’ children and some of them are from families from around the farm. They range in age from 13 to 17 years old. So far, they have met just to talk about their life dreams, some of the daily struggles that they face and some of the fears that they have. This last time, Kerri asked them how a person is able to spend eternity with God in heaven.

These ladies are at a delicate age in their development as young women. In Zambia, there just is not a lot of investment in youth and a lot of times girls like these have no one to talk to and be transparent with who can speak truth into their lives.

As I looked out the window at the group, I couldn’t help but be so thankful for this new life that He has called us to. Kerri has a passion for young women’s ministry, but this type of ministry just wasn’t an option for her in the city. Because of the logistics of travel and her schedule with schooling, she just had no bandwidth. But here, she has the bandwidth and travel isn’t a problem.

Please pray for her and these ladies as they learn and grow in their faith together.

Fixin up the Place

Well, we’re slowly but surely getting settled and our lifestyle is definitely different here than what it was in the city. In the city, we bought all of our groceries straight from the supermarket. Here, we’ve begun growing a lot of our own vegetables. We’ve planted some fruit trees (orange, lemon, guava). We even had a church group come and do some weeding to earn money for a church trip to Mazabuka.

Next week we’ll purchase our first lot of 50 chickens for raising and slaughtering, and hopefully sometime soon, we’ll get some additional chickens for eggs. I guess you can say we’re country!

Anyways, here are just a few pictures of us doing some things around the house. Enjoy!

If you are receiving this post via email, go to the following link to view the slideshow: https://picasaweb.google.com/mzungubwr/FixingUpTheHome?authuser=0&feat=directlink

It's Official

Well, it's official. We have a crappy car. Yesterday, I left Kerri and the kids in the bush in Chikankata and headed to the city to see if I could get the car fixed again. It's becoming a regular routine. This time, the whole front-end of the car shakes when accelerating, it billows black smoke while driving and there is something causing the back end to sound like it's grinding metal. I had to leave it in Lusaka with a friend last week, because I just didn't think it could make the 2 hour trip. Thankfully, we have been able to borrow a vehicle, but that's about to come to an end.

Anyways, we continue to pray that the mechanic can work his magic and make it drivable. I'll be going to spend the morning at the shop with one of his guys to see if we can get it sorted out at least so that it is drivable in the short-term. But in the long-term, we have to make a change.

I know we just finished asking for funds for the ministry in December, and I hate to do it again, but I feel it is necessary. So, with that being said, we are now trying to raise funds to purchase another used vehicle for our family to drive. If you would like to help us by being an advocate for this in the States, please let us know. We estimate that we will need approximately $22,000 - $25,000 to make it happen.

If you look at that figure and think it is high, please know the situation here in Zambia is much different than in the States. All vehicles here are imported. The Zambian government uses this to their advantage and taxes all imports rather extensively (at 96% of their value). So, a car that would normally cost us around $12 or $13,000 ends up costing a whole lot more! They used to let organizations like ours import duty-free, but about a year ago, they stopped that. So, we have no way around it.

Would you please consider helping us? Maybe you can't afford to make a donation, but know some people who might. Please feel free to tell them about us. Or if you would like to make a donation, please do so at the following link: www.CTEN.org/BrentRoberts. All donations are 100% tax-deductible.

Would you consider helping our family find reliable transportation?

Thank you

Caught In Traffic

An eventful morning for the Roberts. On the way home we were passed by the vice president's motorcade. The only problem was that Kerri didn't see them coming. So, when she turned into the grocery store parking lot to pick up a few last minute items, she cut one of the motorcycle cops off. Luckily he saw her turning or it could have been a really bad morning.

He ended up taking her license and requiring her to go to the police station, which is where we sit now. The fine? $60 for reckless driving. It's been paid and now we're waiting on the officer to return and give her her license. The Things we do for fun in Zambia!

Car Troubles

Well, it's happened again, another breakdown. After a long weekend in the city doing some much needed grocery shopping and loading our car to the max we headed out for the two hour journey back to Chikankata. Just as we reached the outskirts of the city I smelled something funny. Now, with five children, I'm pretty used to smelling something funny in the car, but this was a different smell. As soon as I looked at the gauge, I saw the problem. The car was running hot.

Because I'm typing this post on my phone, I'll spare you and my fingers all of the details for now, but it was quite an ordeal. It involved coming to a stop in front of a bar full of drunk men, having them then askme if I knew that my car was smoking, them climbing up under the hood trying to "identify" the cause, and then not leaving until I gave them some small bills for their assistance.

All was not too bad though. A friend and his buddy did come to the rescue, with tow rope in hand, brought us the Whitfield's vehicle, helped us switch all of our groceries, luggage and children to that car and that towed our car to the shop.

Please be in prayer for us as we head back to the city today to get the car. Our car is the most important thing we own in Zambia and it has become quite unreliable. Before we came back to the States a year ago, we had to replace the head gasket, before that it had overheated several times and now this. It's all we got. So pray that it will last for some time longer.

Anyways, here's to another African adventure!

Blessings

White Men Don't Do This

Another fishing story, but this one has to do more with culture than language. The same day last week that I was fishing another interesting thing happened. I was on one side of the pond fishing beside 2 or 3 other Zambian families and Dailes and her son Milton were fishing on the other side.

As they sat there, some of the Zambians around them began to ask "Why is the bwana (boss) fishing with us wakuda (blacks)? This is not normal, that he would come and be with us."

Even today, after 40+ years of independence from British colonialism, there is still a divide that exists between black Zambians and whites. It is not common for us to actually come into their community and show them that we are interested in being around them, in building relationships with them, in investing in their lives and learning from them, in understanding their culture and knowing their language and in serving them instead of being served.

Had Dailes not been there on the other side of the pond, I probably wouldn't have had any idea how my presence at the pond was perceived, but I'm glad she was. Not only did she have an opportunity to talk about Kerri and me and tell them why we had come to Chikankata, she was also able to give us a little insight into the culture and people we are trying to minister to.

As I have continued to reflect on their statements about me that day at the pond, I have been reminded of a verse from the book of Philippians and how Christ invaded our world. How God took on flesh so that we ultimately could be reconciled back to Him. Listen to the verse: "He did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross." May we all look for ways to do things that are not normal for the glory of our beautiful Savior!

A Lesson in Language

On Monday, I begin the process of trying to learn a new language, Tonga. But I think I had my first unofficial lesson this past Wednesday.

As a way to mingle with the community of farm workers and their families who surround our home, I try to go fishing every once in a while. These Zambians with their fishing equipment (bamboo poles and fishing line), are limited with what they can catch usually fish smaller than the size of my hand. So, this past week, when I caught a little bit bigger fish (about 1 & 1/2 lbs) I decided to give it to the family that I was fishing beside.

The woman who I tried to give the fish to, spoke no, none, zero, zilch, nata English! So, I decided to try and tell her in Nyanja (the language we learned in the capital, but a language not always spoken in Chikankata) that I was giving her the fish. I said "Ndi patsa nsomba kwa inu. Mu patsa babanja." Meaning "I give you this fish, you give to your family." She replied rather kindly, took the fish and then left with her family. I thought, even though I don't speak Tonga yet, maybe, just maybe I can use my Nyanja to get by until I do.

Well, the next morning, I found out just how successful I was in my communication. I was telling Moverty how I caught a fish the previous day and gave it to a family. He asked me for a description of the lady I gave it too and then proceeded to tell me that the lady came by and gave the fish to him. Apparently, she thought I caught the fish and gave it to her to bring to my home. I guess I wasn't strong enough to carry it the 400 yards to my house.

I told Moverty that if he saw her again to tell her that the fish was for her. But a good lesson was learned. When people don't get the intended message in their heart language, there can often be times when miscommunication occurs and the message is not understood. Being that we have a message that brings life, reconciliation and relationship with God the Creator through Christ, it gives me all the more motivation to learn this language called Tonga!

Christmas in Chik

Slideshow Link: https://picasaweb.google.com/mzungubwr/Christmas2011?authuser=0&feat=directlink

We hope you had a wonderful Christmas and pray for a good beginning to the new year. We just wanted to share a few pictures from our first Christmas in Chikankata.

Before we left the States, the grandparents packed and paid for 2 bags to be sent with us to Zambia full of Chirstmas presents. We sure are glad that they did, because the kids were so excited to wake up Christmas morning and have presents to open.

After opening presents, our kids each picked a present of their own to give to Dailes, Pauline and Moverty's children. So, we used some of the paper from the presents that they had just opened, rewrapped the presents and then walked over to their homes to have a short Christmas celebration with them. It was fun watching their children open presents.

Afterwards, the women came over to the house and helped Kerri cook a big Christmas lunch for all of the families. We ended up having chicken, fish, Nshima, rape (which is like collards), cabbage and sodas to drink. Being away from our own families during the holidays, it was nice to have other families to celebrate the day with and it turned out to be a pretty special day.

All Choked Up

We had our first scare this evening. I fell asleep studying language and had probably been down for about an hour when I was suddenly awakened by Caleb screaming "She's choking! She's choking!". I kept up as quick as I could and ran into the kitchen just as Kerri was turning Gracyn around to give her the heimlich maneuver (don't know if I spelled that correctly).

As she squeezed, I prayed over and over. Apparently Gracyn swallowed a bone from a small fish she was eating and it was stuck and obstructing her breathing. After a few long minutes, which seemed like an eternity, the bone was dislodged and Gracyn swallowed it - ending our first Chikankata scare.

As all of this happened, I found myself contemplating all of our alternatives (which were few) if things took a turn for the worse. I was suddenly reminded (once again) of how dependent we are on the Lord and on the prayers which you offer up on our behalf. So, with that in mind, please remember to pray for us regularly as we pursue His calling here in Zambia.

It's Not Every Day You See This...

Kerri and I went into Mazabuka the other day to do a little grocery shopping. As we sat down for lunch at the only restaurant in town, a pizza joint in a gas station, we saw this truck pull up to fuel up. I didn't know that you could fit two cows into the back of a pickup, did you?

Merry Christmas

We just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! We hope your holidays are a treasured time spent with family and friends! And we pray that Christ is at the center of it all!

Love,

The Roberts