A Surprise Party!

With the help of many a surprised birthday party was planned for Jeremiah's big 3-0! When Jeremiah  went to the gym the house was decorated and food was prepared. Jeremiah is always helping others so it was fun to see everyone working together to help make it a special day for him.

When he came home SURPRISE!!! We let him shower before we began...

Many people had different activities planned to entertain the group. Some sang songs...

While others wrote poems for him.

Gifts were given...

some were bought, some were made, and one was painted!

There was dancing, too!

We were given a speech by Fredrick Takem who Jeremiah has Bible studies with. The other man is a neighbor who gave a toast with sparkling grape juice. It was encouraging to hear the positive things everyone said about my husband to let him know he is appreciated.

 "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord." I Corinthians 15:58

I didn't get a picture of the food but we had accra banana (banana and cocoyam that has been mashed and put into balls to fry), Auntie's special fried rice, chicken and cake! This is the clean up crew.

I tease Jeremiah about being an old man now but when I think about the many things God has accomplished through him already- in just 30 years on earth I am truly amazed. He is still goal driven and has written down goals for the next decade of his life and I pray I can be a good helpmate to him throughout. What an amazing husband, father, brother in Christ, and worker for the Lord!

WE LOVE VBS!

 Something we have always enjoyed doing, since we were in Ghana, has been having Vacation Bible School for neighborhood kids. This year, we got to have a VBS again, and it was a great time.

George and Perla were of tremendous help with the VBS this year, with George especially being responsible for much of it. He helped teach the kids songs, did the Bible stories, lead the games and showed videos for the kids. We helped plan and organize things and pitched in to help, but  it was very encouraging to see George, who was a part of so many VBS programs in Ghana, be able to step up and do so much to ensure that the program was a success. 

Volunteer at work. We were very grateful for Brian and Jael's house to host the VBS in as it rained frequently during the time. Perla helped with crafts and snacks even as she battled a stomach bug. 

Teaching about Noah with the younger group of kids. We used the school library for the arts and crafts time. 

Some of the younger kids' class. 

Crafts time! We made paper boats for the lesson on Noah!

We had from 25-40 kids each day of VBS, in spite of frequent rains. What a great chance to teach these kids Bible lessons. As we always cheer- "We LOVE VBS!!!"

Ladies Seminar in Bombe

We had a great 3 days in the village of Bombe for the Ladies Seminar. I am so thankful for the opportunity that was given to go and serve there.

Esther Omam (my Cameroon mum) and I tag-teamed on the first lesson and theme from Ephesians 4:22-24; about laying aside the old self and putting on the new self which is in the likeness of God. 

With the cross reference coming from Galatians 2:20 "It is no longer I who lives but Christ who lives in me.." and II Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

It was nice getting to hear lessons from other Christian women as well. The lady on the left is teaching in French while the lady on the right translated in Pidgin.

We also had a questionnaire for the older ladies about the marriage bed.  

The ladies in Bombe did a great job cooking for the crowd. The green here is used for making one of my favorite Cameroonian foods, fufu and eru.

Pap (corn that has been soaked in water for 3 days then ground and made into a porridge with milk and sugar),  Cameroonian plum (it's a bit bitter and has the texture somewhat like an avocado), and puff puff (somewhat like fried donuts) for breakfast!

Gari fufu (dried cassava) and groundnut soup with okongabong ( a green) with fish.

Plantain and beans, yum!

Perla using her muscles to fetch water from the well for the cooks to use in the outside kitchen... Our stomachs weren't quite used to the water so we became experts at using...

...a pit toilet! :)

These cuties kept asking me to snap their pictures and then wanted to see them on my phone.

Some of the many ladies who helped with this ladies program.

An offering was taken up by the ladies for the woman in the white shirt and black skirt to help her and her 5 children get back on their feet. Her husband drinks a lot and one night he beat her very badly so the villagers took matters into their own hands and beat him and told him not to come back to the village leaving the woman with no place to go or way to support herself. The offering was enough for her to buy a mattress for her and the children to share and for her to start a small business like frying and selling puff puff.

A highlight of the program was the quiz that was put on. Different questions were asked about the theme, Bible verses and so forth.  

Everyone who participated got a small gift but the top 4 winners got bigger rewards such as glasses, umbrellas and flashlights. 

Those who helped with the quiz by coming up with and asking the questions, keeping time, and score got a gift too!

Overall it was a great seminar, we didn't even let the abundance of rain stop us. 

Trying to pack up 8 women and a baby's luggage was not easy but we all worked together and got it done!

We are super thankful for the funds that were given to get a bigger vehicle with 4 wheel drive and more seats so we can help more people go to programs such as these and reach out to other areas in Cameroon that are harder to get to. God continues to provide all our needs through His people!

Please pray that the fruit of this program will be lasting and that we can continue to shine brightly for our King!