This content is over a year old now. Please, read this page keeping its age in your mind and realise that not all the links will work. I'm happy to hear from you if you find anything that is broken or dysfunctional, but I may or may not be able to do anything about it!
First of all, please accept our apologies for the lack of updates. We have been hampered by what I shall call ‘transitional hiccups’. A big adjustment has been in how we try and access the internet here. All internet access in our part of the country is by way of 3G Cell phone network. We pay for it on a sort of pre-pay process involving ‘phone credit’ that we scratch off the code and enter it to an SMS number similar to many pay-as-you-go systems in the UK. You get the idea that it can be complex, and so we have had to figure out a couple of new ways of working and sharing with you all. I have to extend my thanks to Dave Hewer who has been able to help us out!
How are we doing? Dan is still doing well at school; he is enjoying the bigger environment, and has made some friends quickly. He also enjoys our living environment, the compound we are on has plenty of people he interacts with and plays with and he feels very at home. Ali has been interacting with some people in the office and has agreed to help out by becoming the curator of two databases holding information about the translation needs in Nigeria and the materials that have already been produced for Nigeria languages. It isn’t what we were expecting her to get involved in, but as there isn’t a need for her teaching skills right now, she is looking forward to turning her hand to this and serving in this way, and the director responsible for it is thrilled to have her on board. I (Tim) am settling into the office and starting to get my head around my various roles in the office. The project funding cycle means the work comes and goes, but building good relationships with the people who I will relate to in that role has been going well. As part of my special projects for the Director role, I have done a bunch of different things from setting up rooms, to creating booklets for meetings, to currently looking after visitors from Wycliffe UK.
You can find our latest set of pictures here including some of the projects I have visited with our UK visitors: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150287960476914.334353.512536913&l=c648b596c8&type=1
One thing we are still trying to get our heads around here is the cost of living, and where to buy the things we need / want. It can be something as simple as who sells the best bananas at a price we are happy with, all the way to – we have a water leak, how do we get it fixed?! It is amazing that some things are so simple here like, for example, the ‘veg lady’ who sells right outside our compound, is extremely popular with most of the mission community, and we have her on the doorstep! On the other hand however is the buying-a-car experience. It is far more complex than in the UK and also FAR more expensive than in the UK. We have been hugely blessed to have access to a car until mid-December when the owners return from the USA. It does mean we need to get on with starting the process of buying our own car. If you feel you would be able to financially help us with that, do please get in touch!
We had the immense privilege of attending a New Testament Dedication for a nomadic people earlier this week. It was so exciting to be reminded of the impact of the ministry we are involved in out here. Nigeria has 520 languages, maybe 300 of those have not a single word of scripture yet! How are people to know Christ? How are people to understand His Word for themselves? How are churches supposed to grow and establish deep roots? People need a Bible they can understand!
Praise:
Dan settling in well and loving Nigeria
Provision of housing in a compound with great people
Good relationships with other people in our mission community
Pray:
Wisdom as we look at purchasing a car that will meet our needs
Continued wisdom about our work roles and how best to employ our skills
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