For those of you who have asked for another glimpse into this missionary's life:
It seems I've blinked, and our lives went into lightspeed.
With corona virus, our lives have changed with the rest of the world. More time online. Less time in person. Group limits, curfews, mask mandates, restrictions... etc. To me, it was a slower busy time. We spent a lot of time at home, which has been good for our family. Yet, we seemed to somehow pick up other activities, online or otherwise, or just have house projects that have kept us busy. At the same time, time dragged on, waiting for "normalcy" again. You all understand...
And then, the city has started opening. The public pre-school where our boys attend has opened, on and off, giving us some time to get out without all 3 small children tagging along (Paul is still home with us). Neighbors are dropping in again. Funerals and weddings are taking place. People are physically attending church. It's nice to be out, even with the new normal.
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| Family game time. |
We have hired a second tutor and are now taking 14 to 15 hours of tutoring a week. We take secular subjects and grammar with one teacher and Biblical terminology with another. This means (roughly) from 10am-1pm 4 days a week are occupied with lessons. Added to that, we need time for homework, lesson writing, illustrations and research. It's a LOT. I often feel swamped, and, we don't have the extra days to just go to lunch together on a whim. However, if we put in a hard year of language now, we will reap the benefits in a year or so.
Michael writes full sermons, including illustrations, each week. I write a complete Sunday school curriculum for the week, with story, songs, games and activity take-home paper. This means hours. I try to research the story each week, to see it with new eyes, and to make sure I'm properly balancing the applications with other Scripture. I'm amazed how much time it can take to write a 15 minute Bible story, with activities to fill another 30 minutes. And of course, there's the time needed just to find pictures and ideas on the internet or the file box. Also, there is a discipleship book that I am trying to translate as I have time.
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| My well-used study space, complete with object lesson materials... |
Outside of tutoring, there are several weekly Bible study opportunities, in both local language and English. My husband has joined an in-depth Bible study another missionary is hosting, to help with Biblical language acquisition. He also attends a midweek Biblical discussion/ question and answer time. I try to have a Bible study/fellowship time with another lady one day every week.
I've been able to take some online classes for music training and publishing as I seek to write Biblical, doctrinally sound, encouraging hymns for the Believers here. These classes are full of ideas, but also "homework" of sorts, to hone the needed skill set. Some of this, such as listening to a specific style of music, can be done while doing laundry or moping, while other of it- the hours of composition working and reworking- must be done at a computer in a dedicated time block.
Last week, I looked at the schedule with consternation. I went from being available anytime to, booked up completely, and it seemed to happen overnight. God is working, and I know as we get more involved and do things with friends and neighbors, our schedule will be tighter. I'm excited to see that we are settling in after being here for several years. As difficult as it is to keep up with language "homework," I'm glad to finally be connecting dots, correcting fewer mistakes, and communicating a little easier.
Please pray for us as we jump into a new phase of life and ministry, that we would do it with joy, and that God would direct our steps.
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