Bwana Jesu Asifiwe!

Bwana Jesus Asifiwe!  Praise the Lord!

Carrie and Tobie getting to know the children of Illula

Last Sunday we had the honor of worshiping with the Ilula Lutheran Church of Ilula, Tanzania just outside of Iringa.  All together there were probably 500 people present between two services.  As is the custom, I, as the visiting pastor, was asked to preach at both services.  It was wonderful to share with these brothers and sisters across the globe that we are indeed, "Katika Christos tu mwila mojia!" (One Body in Christ).

Preaching at Illula

Of course the music and singing and dancing was phenomenol.  We were inspired to be in their joyfilled presence.  I preached on John 17 and spoke about the number of times that Jesus prays in that passage that all people might be one as He and His Father are one.  It was a true message of unity and communion, and one that was met with much applause, whistling and clapping.  The people of the Lutheran Church in Tanzania understand fully what it means that we are all One in Christ.



Preaching at Illula Hospital Chapel



Illula Lutheran is the partner congregation of Chisago Lakes Lutheran in Center City.  My mother and father in-law are with us and they are members of CLLC and, so, represented that congregation during our visit.  It was fun to see the enthusiasm and excitement that the congregation had as they welcome my in-laws (and all of us) with such love and joy and passion.  This was the first visit from CLLC to Illula since the inception of their partnership in 2003 and hopefully the begining of many future visits.

Our family will worship at Kihesa Lutheran Church in Iringa this coming Sunday and the following Sunday will be at Fish Lake's partner congregation, Wasa, with the group of 13 from Fish Lake Lutheran who will be arriving on Monday night here in Iringa.  We are really excited for that group to arrive.



Tembo



After a busy weekend visiting with Illula Lutheran Church and Hospital, we set out for safari at Ruaha National Park which is five hours Southwest of Iringa.  We did three game drives in our 48 hour stay and saw some incredibly beautiful and powerful animals within the animal kingdom - most notably the Lions and Elephants.  We were completely within their territory the entire time, but with common sense and safety we were kept safe and sound.  Both nights we slept in our bandas we saw elephants and giraffes within feet away from us.  They were illumined brightly by the nearly full moon.  Quite the sight and feeling!



Simba

Tomorrow we are off to do some first-time grocery shoppin in Iringa - not to mention first-time driving for me!  The steering wheel is on the right side and we drive on the left side of the road - oh, and our Toyota Land Cruiser is a stick shift!  Wish me luck!

Carrie and the kids will write soon.  I'm sure you're all eager to hear from them as well.

As always, we are keeping each of you, friends and family, in our prayers for well-being, comfort, healing and joy. 

Peace to you,

Dale  

Primate or Not a Primate?

In case you're among those who have referred to our Tobie as a monkey before - here we can help you out.  Though, we agree Tobie does, in fact, squeal like a monkey, eat like a monkey (notice coconut), and yes, walk on all fours like a monkey, he is not actually a monkey.  This friendly monkey you see pictured here was kind enough to join us for dinner last evening in a nearby tree.  He, is a monkey.  Tobie, is not.  But we are still not completely convinced.  The monkeys and Bush Babies (very elusive!  Thus, no pictures!) are heard swinging through the trees over our bandas in each evening.

The sunset occurred at 6:19pm in Fumba, and brought a stunning conclusion to a very busy day on the ocean, snorkeling, swimming, sailing and meeting new friends.  See pictures on our facebook pages.
Tomorrow we depart Fumba and Zanzibar, and head back to Dar Es Salam for one more night before heading to Iringa.  We are enjoying these days of rest and adventure before the busy (a relative term in Africa) pace of school and teaching and preaching begin on October 8 at Tumaini.

Tobie

Monkey

Sunset - Fumba, Zanzibar

 

Sawa, Sawa.

"Sawa, Sawa."

Carrie and Tobie - an early morning on Fumba Beach.

In Swahili they say, "Sawa, Sawa", meaning, "It's all good."

All Carrie needs to complete this pic is her portable radio and a Twins game.

Off to breakfast soon, then to an ocean safari adventure.

We Made It!

We are in Dar es Salam!
Plane travel went well.  All are tired, but safe and sound.
Getting ready to wake the fam after a very short night of sleep, for complimentary breakfast, and shuttle ride to ferry for Zanzibar.

Today and tomorrow will be spent exploring Zanzibar and relaxing on beach of Indian Ocean.  Amazing that the first ocean our children will see will be the Indian Ocean.

Then, back to Dar for a night before heading to Iringa.

New friends so far, include, Kulwa, Habib, Anastasia, and many others.

Temperature is HOT!  And the sun isn't even up yet!

Will write more later.  Internet so far, is spotty.

God bless our friends and family back home.

Dale

A Final Blessing

Early Monday morning.
Bags are packed.  Still a few dishes in the sink.  Thankfully we got all the garbage out last night for our one last garbage pick up this morning!  A few random items we decided not to pack are strewn about.  Fridge is emptied.  Freezer is packed.  Time to shut down the house for the first half of the winter.  We leave MSP today at 3:15 and will arrive in Amsterdam about midnight (MN time).  After a three hour layover there we head to Dar es Salam where we will hotel it for a night before heading to Zanzibar for a few days of R & R.

What a blessing it was in worship yesterday as the congregation gathered to worship with joy and enthusiasm before sending us off with their blessing.  Floyd had the whole congregation join hands (even the balcony folks had to come down for it!) and we prayed for our family, for the congregation, and for Pastor Conrad Warner and his wife, Susan.  It was a good day.

The day ended with a visit to our dear friend, Jill Gustafson.  Carrie and I went to her home to say our goodbyes.  Jill is dying from cancer.  It was good.  But what was even better, and what I will take with me on this journey, is her blessing.  With a laborer effort, and very soft-spoken voice, she reached up traced my baptismal cross on my forehead and said these words to me, "May the Lord bless you and keep you.  May the Lord make his face to shine upon you.  May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and grant you peace.  In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen."

Thank you Jill.  That was my final blessing for this trip, and one I will hold tightly to as we journey.
Carrie and I were so blessed to be in your presence and to hear you say, "God bless you on your journey."  The same to you Jill.  The same to you.

Peace,

Dale

Organized Chaos

"Organized Chaos"

Yes, that's our living room floor - at least what you can see of it.  10 carry-ons and suitcases scattered about with clothes, books, snacks, games, beach towels, shoes and anything else you might imagine we would pack for a 3 month travel adventure.  Now comes the fun part of filling up each suitcase and jockeying items around to make sure none of them exceeds 50 lbs and that all the carry-ons meet the "total linear dimension" requirement for the overhead compartments.  And don't you know, we'll surely forget something, won't we?  Now, where's my toothbrush!

Random Thoughts for the Day

Random thoughts of today ...

• had a worship and music committee meeting tonight.  strange planning Fall worship knowing that I won't be around for it - Thanksgiving, All Saint's, Advent, Christmas.  We have a wonderful committee who have invested great time and commitment into making worship  priortity, as always, at Fish Lake Lutheran this Fall.  They will work closely with Pr. Connie to allow him to bring his own fresh and new ideas, energy and perspectives to worship.  God bless them and our congregation as they worship together this Fall.
• had an insightful lunch meeting at Luther Seminary today with Pr. Richard Larson from Bayport Lutheran Church.  Richard served as a Pastor/Teacher at Tumaini University in Fall of 2010 as his sabbatical. He was full of insights and suggestions and new realizations for me as I get ready to embark on a very similar journey in less than a week.  Students are very quiet apparently.  They highly respect Americans - especially Lutheran Americans - and are eager to learn from us.  It's not unusual for students to begin each class session with prayer or even to break out into song in the middle of class!  I hope this happens on a regular basis!  I think I could get used to many african song breaks.  Speaking of breaks - apparently african students aren't interested in stretch breaks.  Richard said when he would offer a five minute break to stretch during class, they would all remain seated while he got up and walked around for five minutes.  Richard was able to share more about the apartment in which we will be staying and the local shops where we can buy fresh produce.  He spoke of the many preaching opportunities that await me and how enoyable that was as he traveled around the countryside on weekends with a translator spreading the Word of God.  He also shared a bit about driving in TZ.  The steering wheel is on the opposite of the vehicle so he stressed to just stay close to the center line and you'll quickly get used to it.  Oh, and roundabouts!  There are a lot of them!  I can't do roundabouts at home, much less in TZ.  Apparently at home you take them counterclockwise but in TZ you take them clockwise.  Lord help me!  Thank you, Richard for our enthusiasm, passion, and love for the Tanzanian people and their culture.  I'm even more excited after spending two hours with you today.
• Suitcases are scattered about our living room.  We've begun the process of packing and sorting and deciding where to put what.  So hard to know what to bring, how much to bring, and what not to bring.  I hope to learn the lesson of "less is more" throughout our time in TZ.  Maybe we should begin with our packing.
• am grateful for the opportunity to share this experience with my family.  am wishing mom and dad were around to share in our excitement with us.  They would be so excited for us an happy for us (and yes, a bit worried for us too).  They'll be with us in spirit.  Dad would love the african people so much!  He'd have them all singing some old school rock and roll song in no time!
• am thankful for the congregation I serve.  I'm beginning to see some of the transition taking place already by members of the church stepping up to assume leadership roles/positions.  Between them and Pr. Connie, I am so excited for them to see and find out what God will show them and how God will use them in our absence.  We are all going to learn so much.
• spent a good portion of today writing my New Testament curriculum.  what a challenge.  what a joy.  what an opportunity.  It is amazing - the power of the Word.  Excited to teach it to new friends in a new culture.

That's all for now.  Random thoughts, indeed.
On to packing...
Peace and God bless you.
Dale