Leaving Ouaga!

I just received word that I will be leaving Ouaga to finally head to the Sheltering Wings Orphanage in Yako this Friday (10/31). Prayers for the travel and adjustment there will be greatly appreciated!! My time in Ouaga has been great, but I am excited to settle into my ministry at the orphanage and have a little more of a schedule and an idea of what I'll be doing for the coming year.

I don't know what sort of access I'll have while in Yako (slim to none I believe) so I may not get your emails or comments for a few weeks. I'll do my best to answer them when I do have access! Thanks so much for your love and support- until the next time in Ouaga, A Bientot!

A servant for Him,
~Liz

A day of firsts...

Today was definitely an interesting day... From the moment I arrived in Burkina and saw the traffic in Ouagadougou, I decided there was no way I wanted to drive, ride a bike, or drive a moto (moped/motorcycle). The motos and bikes pull out right in front of the cars; the cars drive all over the road; there really are no lines; the motos/bikes are supposed to stay on the right side of the lanes yet you often see them darting between cars; there are different traffic lights for cars and motos/bikes in some areas; and the list goes on....

The main street near SIM- NOT during rush hour

Well... today I had planned to go with a woman from the SIM office (a Burkinabe woman) to have some cloth tailored to make me a dress... Little did I know, the place to go was a distance away and as we walked out the SIM gate, she grabbed her moto and started it up. I just looked at her like, are you kidding? She told me to get on- needless to say, I was quite afraid. She assured me I'd be fine though, and off we went- me clinging to her waiste as though I would fall if I even loosened my grip. We made it safely to her house and then to the tailor's...

Then came my next "first." Once at the tailor's, we walked next door and the woman I was with filled a small dish she had brought with a local woman's food being sold on the street. We then got back on the moto and rode to her house (with the hot food hanging from a handle-bar. When we arrived I washed my hands in a bowl of water, and then we dug into the food with our hands. It was rice with some sort of sauce and a piece of fish on top. Wow! It was definitely interesting and quite an adventure to try to eat without spilling all over her floor (she said "pas de problem" though- no problem)... To drink, we had a sweet sort of milky drink made of millet (the main grain in Burkina), water, and sugar. Also interesting, but pretty good. My first real Burkinabe meal!

Finally, I returned safely to the SIM compound thinking my day was coming to a close and I would get a nice siesta in before dinner (the country literally rests from 12-3 every day). But no... Two friends on the compound go to the hospital here in Burkina each Monday to read Bible stories to some of the children. They asked if I wanted to go- which I really did!- and they informed me we would take bikes. Ahhhh! More nervewracking than the moto! So I hopped on an old bike (yes mom... I used a helmet. Actually here, barely anyone wears a helmet- it is a sort of status symbol if you can afford one... But SIM policy says we wear them!)... We made it safely after about a 15 minute ride, and I experienced the biggest hospital in Burkina. Wow it was sad... People everywhere, and supposidly today it was not that busy. We played a game with about six children who were well enough to leave their rooms, then talked about the creation story with them, colored pictures of it, and then walked them back to their rooms... It was so incredibly sad to see the children- many sick with Malaria and fairly treatable illnesses- in so much pain and sadness...

Teaching a song to some of the children in the hospital

I have attached a few pictures just to give you a taste- hopefully I'll take more soon!

Thanks to all for the birthday wishes yesterday! It was a great birthday and my new friends here also helped me to celebrate! Definitely a tough evening for homesickness, but a wonderful, HOT (107 degrees) day!!

A servant for Him,

~Liz

The road to SIM compound

The gate to SIM!

The door to my room

Stomach problem solved!

For those of you who were wondering, we figured out what my stomach issue was! On my instructions for my malaria medicine, it emphasized "TAKE ON AN EMPTY STOMACH." It said if you eat to wait 2 hours to take it or wait to eat after taking it for 1 hour. So in talking with other missionaries here, they told me "DO NOT take on an empty stomach!!!" Every single one of them were shocked that I would have been taking it without eating. Last night I attempted the new strategy and had NO stomachache. This morning was almost as good! I will attempt it again tonight (we're getting Chinese food as a SIM group-- in Africa! :) ) and hopefully it will be the same. Crazy!! At least that's hopefully taken care of now.

Oh, and I had two fairly good (short) conversations today and yesterday on my own- In French! Yay! It feels good when I understand or am able to communicate. Still... a ways to go.

Pictures soon! :)

A servant for Him,
~Liz

Bonsoir du Burkina Faso!

I can hardly believe it, but I am HERE! I made it safely and fairly on-time on Monday night. It was an interesting plane ride… Not much sleep and a little nauseous for some of it. I actually had a 7hr layover in Paris, so I met a friend of a friend and got to see a few sights!! It was really great and a nice break from the airport. Customs was… interesting. We got off the plane to intense heat and stood in line in a little room (tons of us- actually a large flight) for over a half hour. People seemed to be getting through quickly though, so I thought it would be easy… Unfortunately the officer at customs would not hand back my passport and I couldn’t understand what he was saying in French about the problem with it. Soo he finished the last three people behind me while I stood there nervous as ever, and then I said “Ne comprend pas!” The problem was that I had filled a couple of the sections out either wrong (only one I think) or he couldn’t read my little English handwriting. After that fun adventure and being the only one left in there, I went out to get my bags and lo and behold, the big Rubbermaid of donations for the orphanage was missing. I was led into a room (kind of scary!) and sat down at a desk with a man at the computer. He only spoke French and we attempted a conversation of trying to figure out what the problem was. Thankfully Leanne from SIM found me and helped with the end. Despite the toughness of it, I was pretty proud of myself for getting through the conversations and remembering even a tiny bit of French.

There is so much else to tell!! I’ve still been fighting the nauseousness- possibly from malaria pills? The first night and day and a half were kind of tough. Believe it or not, I had the thoughts of “what in the world am I doing here- am I crazy? Is this really where God wants me?” Quite a bit of comfort came though, when I was able to check my email yesterday afternoon and received a few from friends who had been through the same sort of culture shock- the assured me (without even knowing that the very thoughts were going through my head) that it was completely normal. Yesterday afternoon I also met some of the girls living here at the SIM compound, so that definitely helped cure my loneliness a little.

What else… My Rubbermaid came in yesterday- Praise God!.. Sleeping under a mosquito net isn’t so bad actually- it make me feel safe from the bugs and other visitors (though haven’t seen too many yet). My bathroom is interesting- the shower is right in the room- literally! I shower next to the toilet and sink. It’s cold, but feels great with the hot weather. Oh, did I mention that it is HOT!?! I’m getting used to the feeling of constantly sweating and smelling too. Right now I have my own room (with a fan!! I don’t use it too much though because I don’t want to use a lot of electricity) but tonight another woman will be coming in and sharing the room, and tomorrow someone else will move in. They’ll both be leaving by Monday though.

Interesting things to share… Gechos are everywhere. Actually, they make good pets though because they eat all the bugs! I heard this loud noise all around us last night and the night before- sounded like the chains on a swing squeaking- I asked one of the girls if they were crickets or bugs or something, and she said “oh no, they’re bats..” Ahh!! I started my French class today- it was actually a lot better than I thought because it’s starting to come back to me. Maybe I’ll start writing my blogs in French :). Our three hour lesson was outside under this little thatch roof with a big old blackboard. Throughout our lesson, a rooster wandered in and out and would crow throughout- so surreal!! I actually walked back by myself though, which made me feel very independent and already acclimating a little into the culture. I was able to greet the people I passed, and oh my goodness the children are precious! The food has been good so far- different SIM missionaries volunteer to cook for the new missionaries for the first three days, so I’ve been in the homes of a few so far! Soon I’ll have to cook for myself though- eek!

I probably have a lot more I could write, but figure I should keep this one short. I will be here in Ouaga for the next week, but then heading to Yako and less internet access. I’ll update again before going, and hopefully post some pictures!! Thank you SO much for your prayers the past few days- I know God’s been looking out for me :) A bientot and talk to you soon!

A servant for Him,
~Liz

I'm leavin on a jet plane...

Great news!!

First of all, thank you SO much to those of you who attended my fundraiser and for those interested in how it went. We raised about $1100 towards my year in Africa!! Wow!! It was an incredible turnout and we are so blessed by the many people who came out to support me.

And now, the very important news... Below is my final update that I sent via email- sorry if it is a repeat for those of you who received it :)

I now have an official departure date of Oct 19! Less than one week away! I really can't get over it, and am definitely feeling a huge range of emotions in this time- excited, happy, overwhelmed, sad, etc. Also, VERY exciting news.. I just found out that I have basically reached my original goal for support-raising in the funds received and in the monthly promised gifts of friends and family. God is SO awesome and has provided more than I could have asked or imagined. Any remaining funds raised will be put towards the (I'm sure!) unexpected costs that I'll come across while there (a conference for missionaries in January, any travel costs, raised expenses while there, fluctuation in the value of the dollar, increased flight and other travel costs, etc) and needs for the orphanage!! It is so exciting to think that I might even be able to give to a project or some area of need in the orphanage as well.

Despite all these exciting things, I have, as I said, been feeling a sort of emotional rollarcoaster with many goodbyes. I was told by Ruth, the woman who runs Sheltering Wings, that I need to be saying "A Bientot" (French for "See you later") instead of "goodbye." I'll hopefully be able to email you when I arrive in Burkina to let you know I made it. I'll be arriving Oct 20, about 4:00 Michigan time (8pm Burkina). Soo your prayers are very much appreciated in this time. Specific prayer requests at this point are:

-That I'll be able to spend quality time (un-stressed) with family and friends

-That I'll remember everything that I'll need to bring as it feels right now like I'll forget everything important

-That the flight and customs (having the extra donations for the orphanage that I'll be bringing) will go smoothly and that I'll have the strength, health, and energy for the busyness and emotions I'll be experiencing

-That I'll be caught up on sleep and my health good (I'm sick right now!) before leaving

-That adjustments when I arrive will go smoothly

-That God would be before me in this coming year, preparing the right place(s) for me

Thank you SO much for your continued support and prayers and for getting me to this place!! I could definitely never have done it without the support of all of you. God is so good and faithful and I have been blessed in this time.

Please be sure to email me with any of your prayer requests. I'd love updates and I KNOW I'll enjoy getting emails and real mail occasionally too! I'll post my mailing address on the blog. I apologize again, in advance if I am unable to answer your emails as quickly as I'd like- I still do not really know what sort of access I'll have, though it sounds like a couple times a month I'll be able to check email.

May God continue to bless you!!
In His service,

A Bientot,

A servant for Him,

~Liz

Fundraiser!

As many of you know, I have a fundraiser set for one week from today- Tuesday, September 23rd!! It will be at House of Flavors in Manistee from 5-9pm and they will be donating 30% of the evening's profits towards my year in Africa! If you are able, we would love to see you :) I'll be serving your coffee/water/etc. and talking more about what I'll be doing!!

God is good!! Every day He gives me a little more to hang on to and shows me that He is faithful and will provide! I'm currently at 60% of my funds now!!!

Thank you so much for your support and prayers!!!

A servant for Him,
~Liz

Prayers needed!

First, the good news! I recently attended a two week training through SIM in North Carolina called SIMCO. The two weeks were filled with lots of immunizations (my LEAST favorite part), getting to know people, seminars, and prayer. The SIM associates were young and old, long term and short term, singles and families, etc. I now have friends going to India, Peru, Ecuador, and all over Africa. How awesome to have met brothers and sisters that will be serving God to the ends of the earth! I can’t begin to explain what it was like to be with so many that share a similar passion.

The sessions were also great. A normal day was spent from 8:30-5:30 in these various meetings. They were on many different topics ranging from info about SIM and travel info to spiritual warfare and how the Bible is read (contextualization) in other cultures. So much info to pack into my brain!

One of my favorite things though, was the time of prayer and just being able to talk with those at SIMCO and working at SIM. How cool that almost all of the SIM “employees” have been on the mission field for some period of time.

Another blessing has been the ways God has been providing through friends and family in the form of prayer and financial support. I’ve been blessed by the many ways people have sacrificed in order to support me- in turn, supporting the children at Sheltering Wings Orphanage. One huge blessing was when a complete stranger and I were chatting about Africa and he decided to support me!! Wow!

I have been in contact with Ruth at the orphanage and a couple other women that have worked there. I have attached a few pictures from one of the women. As excited as I have been getting, I have also felt a little discouraged though too. My support is at about 25% at this point and in order for me to set a target date for departure I need to be at 75%. To order plane tickets, I need to be at 85%... And finally, to leave, 100%. The encouraging part of this is that it can be at least partially “promised” support. This means if you have decided to give monthly, the total of that will count towards my 85% (100%). Even if you cannot give until say, October, this means if you sent in the yellow slip and promise an amount of support, they will accept this as well.

I actually just figured out that if just 30 people promise $25/month that will completely cover my remaining costs! Wow!

First, would you consider praying for my financial needs and my time of preparation? Would you also prayerfully consider giving a monthly amount if you have not already? $10, $15, or even $20 per month would be a great help. Please know though, that your prayers are equally important to me.

Thank you for being such an incredible support in my life! You have blessed me! I will continue to update you on the financial situation and let you know as soon as I have my departure date.

If you’re not on my updates list and would like to be, please let me know! If you’d like to be a part of my prayer team (choose a day to pray for me each week) please also let me know!

Thank you again!

A servant for Him,
~Liz

Children in Burkina

Along the road in Yako

The many babies at the orphanage!