Life Goes On...

Not really much to write. I have been busy with school, family, Facebook, travelling to the village, managing life while my husband travels in and out of the country and haven't had time to focus on blogging...

Through it all we had one more rumor of possible trouble, but life has stayed peaceful.

One thing that I am trying to work on for school is a required paper on Christian Education. Over the past few years we have read five books and now have to write a kind of summary paper. I've only begun to think about what I've learned, but was reviewing my notes the other day and came across that I don't remember before.

One book suggested that we should teach (live)knowing that we stand in as a proxy for Jesus. That kind of blew me away. It is both an honor and a great challenge to teach and act in a way that mirrors how I think Christ might teach and act. I know I fall so short of how he might lead my class, but I pray that my students can see glimpses of him in what I do and say.

In spite of the challenge, or perhaps partly because of it, I am enjoying life these days. Oh, life certainly has its ups and downs, but God has kept my family and I safe and healthy in all our travels and continues to watch over us and for that I am very thankful. May you too enjoy God's blessings, great and small, in your life!

Dorthea

Peace

And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7

These past few days in Jos we have had rumors of more violence. It resurfaced some of my fears and motivated me to be more ready in the midst of it.

Yet it was still a challenge to focus on the tasks demanding my attention. As I sat at my desk in my classroom, trying to focus on marking papers before my next lesson, I had to stop and pray; then this verse came to mind.

The passage begins with, "Rejoice in the Lord always...have no anxiety about anything..." and ends with the verse above. In the past it was the other verses that claimed my attention, but with the rumors flying the words of peace were given new meaning.

I remember hearing a story when I first arrived in Nigeria on the heels of a similar crisis that hit Kano in 1990. One of the missionaries gave the following account. After the crisis he met a Muslim that he had known for some time and asked him about the crisis. The man admitted that they had been on their way to burn down his compound when they had turned and saw smoke rising as if it was already burning. It wasn't until the fighting had stopped that they realized otherwise.

This story has prompted me to pray for angels with flaming swords to stand on our compound walls and provide similar protection. I am realizing more and more that God can deliver peace in ways that no human mind can understand.

As humans, we want to retaliate. Even people who have preached peace begin to say, "It is enough!" Some churches have been burned several times over the years. When destruction and loss of life has no rhyme or reason it becomes harder to preach peace and yet we have to remember that God's ways are not the world's ways.

These days I pray more and more for this kind of peace. I don't need to understand it, but I do claim it!

I saw another need for this kind of prayer yesterday when one student came in full of anger, annoyance, and frustration claiming he was going to quit school before he hurt someone! It is so easy to fall into traps of anger when we feel slighted or misunderstood. I pray for God's peace to enter the heart of my student too. May you too join me in my prayer for God's peace wherever and whenever you see the need for it.

Oh, soon I have my next women's fellowship meeting. We were only five last week, but again the bonds of connection were made stronger as we realized none of us had ever been in a church group like it. I had thought it was only me! I will share this message with them today and pray that it will also strengthen them and give them a sense of calm and hope in our city Jos.

GOING OUT OF THE BOX

Today I joined the Women's Fellowship gourp in the Nigerian church. After almost thirteen years of being married here, it is high time I did, but it never felt right until now.

The church we attend now is a fairly new congregation and the only one in the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria that uses English alone for worship services and meetings. The combination and the new congregation and not having to deal with the language challenges makes me interested this time. So when one of the older women challenged us to finally form the group, it seemed right.

There are several other factors that also help make it seem right. First of all, God has been sending me several reminders these past years that I need to strengthen my committment to my local church and make attendence and involvement a bigger issue.

Another factor is that several of the other women, we are only eight at the moment, are also professional women who are very busy with work so I can't use my own work as an excuse this time around.

Plus, it really helps that we can all speak English and have post secondary education. I think I can connect with these women.

At the same time I am a bit nervous. We are planning to meet every Saturday from 8:45-10:00 AM. I am fortunate that we meet very close by so it is just a short walk to the meetings, but I have liked not having to rush off on Saturday mornings!

No matter, I think I am ready for this part of my Nigerian journey and God has been preparing me for this for two or three years so I am ready as I'll ever be.
Stretchin myslef out also makes me a little nervous, but I have to trust God that it will be a good experience. This makes three fellowship groups I am in. One that meets after school is also every week, but the other is one Saturday a month.I'll keep you posted about how the group is.

I guess I am a little excited. My question for you today is to ask YOU how God is challenging you to stretch your committment in the larger Christian family. Are you accepting His challenge????? If so, I pray God will give you courage and bring many blessings your way!

Dorthea

Back in Jos

There are many titles I could use for today's blog, Had I been able to change they type setting in the title I would have called this,

"Afraid?" Give it to God...

Earlier this week I was contemplating our return to Jos and the tears started falling. As is often the case, it was late at night and everyone else was fast asleep so it was just me and God.

I had been reading a book by Lori Wick, Every Storm and was reminded of God's steadfastness. "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold in my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1 The passage goes on to describe those that might be after us and the writer offers shouts of joy knowing that, "he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble..." verse 5a.

Claiming these verses gave me peace. That idea of peace continues to be on the forefront of my mind and I can see it is on the mind of many.

How many are not living in peace right now? My husband is hoping to travel to Israel soon; as I write this I hear the news of Israel and Palestine. I pray for peace there.

I have not been following much news lately, but I read that in my home state there are many fearing floods; the elements too can create fear in our hearts.

Life is so unpredictable that I am reassured to seek peace and protection in God's shelter. I have always felt I could trust God with my life and He has so often given me courage, I should say, COURAGE! I have put him to the test so many times in the past years, not just the eighteen that I have spent in Nigeria, but even as a child when life's challenges seemed too great for me, He was there reminding me of the price he paid on Calvary and that if He could rise up from the cross, I too can rise up from whatever happens to me.

There is a lot of Peace in the Promise of His Love! Sharing love can bring a lot of peace, but persnally Knowing the Source of that Love clears the worry and stress that tries to cloud my vision. When my tears stop falling and my vision clears, His Presence is always clearer and I thank and praise Him for the assurance He offers. God is Peace and through Jesus Christ there is joy no matter what happens to us!

May you too know His Peace and Trust His Steadfastness!

Dorthea

Waiting for the Christmas Celebration

As a child, I remember waiting for Christmas meant waiting to put up all the decorations, waiting to get to eat the Christmas cookies we had been making, watching all the gifts under the tree pile up, and finally waiting to see what was in my Christmas stocking.

As I live in Nigeria, my children experience some of these material parts of Christmas, the decorations, the cookies, and the stockings. But most Nigerians don’t think about Christmas until school is out and they decide where they will spend it; in their homes in the city or in the village where most people prefer and usually have a home. Of course my experiences come from northern Nigeria.

City Christmas doesn’t have much more than going to church and visiting family that might live nearby, but in the village, they DANCE! But still, there are few preparations, it just happens. All of a sudden, the church is decorated with lots of flashy decorations and lights around the altar, and the women and youth present their songs and dramas and after a long Christmas Eve Service everyone goes to the village center and the dancing starts.

On Christmas Day neighbors and extended family members exchange pots of rice and stew, little doughnut holes, a drink called kunun zaki or other foods they have an abundance of. Children wander around in groups in their new clothes (new clothes is usually their only gift from their parents) and collect Christmas sweets or a little money from extended family and friends.

At church, there is another long service lasting three to five hours. Then, after lunch, they gather at the village center again and the Boys Brigade parade around and a program is presented by some village group.

In the evenings, sometimes for several evenings, the dancing will continue until the wee hours of the morning. Sometimes a specific night might focus on the women or the men, but then the youth will take over and dance until they drop. Occasionally the youth will stay outside your compound singing and singing until you pay something to send them on their way.

While Christmas is celebrated with lots of fanfare in the village, I find I still have to search for the fragments of Christmas that are familiar and give meaning to my celebration. Usually I find meaning most in the scripture words that we read; the angels’ song and the shepherds’ awe, and the birth of the babe, Mary basking in the babe’s glory and knowing that Christ is still among us. That is what my Christmas involves. While I enjoy the village experience and feel very comforable with the extended family there, I find myself experiencing it more through my children's eyes and trying not to think of my own family in the US.

No matter how I many traditions I try to bring from my upbringing, it always seems to come down to Christ's birth and sharing time with family and friends that gives me the most joy to my Christmas.

May you each celebrate Christmas in a way that allows you too to bask in the babe’s glory so that the wonder of Christ’s birth might fill your hearts with peace and hope for the new year. Peace is something I crave this year, both inner peace and peace around me. May God's Peace, Love, Joy, and Hope fill your holiday season and the New Year.

Merry Christmas! Barka da Krismati! Happy Christmas!

Dorthea

A very crazy month, but never far from God

I don't know if all who read this heard about the Jos crisis. It started right after American Thanksgiving and was very intense for my family and I on Friday and Saturday.

Some say it was a religious crisis, but most who know Nigeria and Jos say it was far more political, but since nothing in Nigeria happens outside of religion, neither was this event absent from religious tension.

The guesthouse where we live and work is in a very Muslim neighborhood and when our neighbors started to riot, their cries were very disconcerting. On Friday morning we feared the rioters would enter our compound so we had to flee from the house and run two compounds over through at least one kind of hidden door.

That first day we did not hear police or military, but the second morning it started right after the dawn to dusk curfew ended and again found us in a corner of the next compound, only that time we could hear the rioters cries met by the military response. I must confess, hearing the military's strong presence as the Muslims refused to step down was very reassuring. (I was told later by my brother-in-law who ventured out later that morning that the street was full of corpses.)

That evening (Saturday) we began hearing rumors that the Muslims might try to come from the big rocks behind the guesthouse so we began making plans to leave. I did most of the packing for the kids and I by candlelight and the light of my cell phone. We had a place to stay that was furnished, but we needed to pack food items, some kitchen stuff and our personal things.

Before 6:30 the next morning we left with a military escort and a soldier in the car and drove across town.

The road we travelled on did not show many signs of fighting, but the four neighborhoods that were hit hardest were not on that road. Schools, mosques, churches, Christian homes, Muslim homes, businesses were all lost. A few days later relief groups counted three large refugee camps with 30,000 people. That doesn't count the many, many compounds that provided refuge to family and friends who lost everything. We passed through many military checkpoints on our way through town.

The reports of compassion come from both sides, as do the many accounts of barbaric violence. Even my girl was running through the house looking for bottles to give to her uncle to make gasoline bombs. (We thank God for the poor aim of those that threw a few over the guesthouse wall.)My prayer for Jos is that the hearts of those that have lost so much will be open to the Word of God.

I think of the many Muslim widows and children who have lost their main provider and pray that their need will open the door for those ready to provide relief and a Word of Peace and Hope.

On December 4th the kids and I and one sister-in-law left Jos for our new house in Yola. From the moment we stepped in the door is seemed like we had come home. I remembered a few weeks earlier when I wondered if we were being selfish to build such a nice house when we had no long term plans to use it. I immediately felt God whispering to me, "Don't worry, you will have a need for it." I still don't know if He means more than this one month when our need has been great, but I see his hand in how hard Amson has been working on the house. I also see his hand in how He led me to get the marking I did before Thanksgiving and get it all entered into the school system.

When school was to start last week I just wasn't ready to head back. I thank God for those that stepped in to allow me the time to heal in Yola. Even now, when I think of going back, I feel the tears wanting to fall and yet I trust that when it is time, He will strengthen me. At this point we plan to return around January 8th.

In the meantime, I have other marking that I am trying to finish. The essays for AP World are done, now I am working on portfolio reports for my basic world history class and then I have some tests and essays to finish in US History. On Sunday Amson will come with part of the exams to mark, mostly essays and portfolios from my AP students. Much to think about while the holidays are going on and during the days we are in the village.

In some ways I feel the stress of the workload, but the peace in our Yola refuge still surrounds me and I know, in God's timing, all will work out.

God is in charge and even though crazy events like this happen in the world we have to trust that God is in control and remember, even when all seems well from the newsreports, there are still many who need your prayers to continue living and caring for their families.

Dorthea in Yola

Family

Family is on my mind a lot these days. November is an important month for my family as both Nat and Annette were born in this month. Today is Annette's birthday and Nat's was two weeks ago. Both had parties the day before with their friends and classmates.

This month I've been thinking of my parents and siblings too as my mom is preparing to sell the home I grew up in and called home for forty years. When I was in the house last January, after my father died, I "said goodbye" and knew I would not return.

Goodbyes are never easy; losing loved ones, seeing ones children growing up and losing their innocence (Nat becomes a teenager next year!), constantly seeing students graduating or returning to their home countries, and the list goes on. I've never been so social that I quickly make friends, and yet these past years in Nigeria seeing so many come and go has made it even harder to connect when I know that I might have to say goodbye in a relively short time.

It's a good thing I deal more with the here and now or I'd suffer from homesickness much more often than I do. Though I guess I am feeling more homesick than usual this past week. There was a group of Lutherans from the US here at the guesthouse for a few days, and I really missed not having time to connect more with them. It wasn't until they left that I realized how nice it was to connect with people from the church I grew up in; my Lutheran roots run pretty deep.

I guess that's one of the reasons why my faith is so important to me. In Luke 7:11-17, we read how Jesus reached out and physically touched a widow's dead son in an effort to bring the boy back to life and relieve the mother's suffering. In verse 13 Jesus spoke to the widow-mother and said, "Don't cry!" He reached out to her, not in pity or because he was uncomfortable or annoyed by her tears, but because Jesus stands for life. Anything related to death greives him deeply.

Jesus constantly and consistently showed compassion for those that came to him. I know for myself that His compassion and never-ending love is something that I need greatly.

I grew up in a family that hugged a lot, but that form of expression is not common in traditional Nigeria so I am fortunate that my kids are good huggers; Daniel and Annette are very affectionate and now and then I can still get a hug out of Nat and my husband has learned that sometimes I just need a hug.

Over the years there have been times when I have just had to reach up and claim a hug from my Father God and amazingly, I have always felt his overwelming love be returned. May you too claim and be touched by His love!