Life is Tough, but God is Good

Every time I sit down to write an update and I have to come up with a title, my first thought is "God is Good". Then, I keep thinking and come up with something more specific. But, you'll notice this time I went with it, although with a modification. I took... ahem, I mean, "borrowed" the title from a memoir my mom wrote last year. I promise I'll not use it again here, though it is fitting to every update I've written in the past and will write in the future because both phrases are unalienable truths. And because BOTH are true, I can always trust God.

‭Isaiah 26:3 NIV‬

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

A couple of months ago, the Dye family was looking at travel dates for their three-month furlough. Their daughter Angela is graduating from Johnson University the first weekend in May, but they usually don't leave for furlough till June because that's when the school year ends for Miah and Natalee. Then, Angela got engaged and started planning a wedding for mid to late August. So, we all prayed for God to guide them. We prayed that the school would allow the kids to miss the last 6 weeks of school. We prayed that God would provide the finances for the airfare and expenses of a four-month trip. We prayed that the church leadership would agree to "run things" in the Dye's absence. 

The funds came through, the schoolteachers agreed to work out a solution for the kids, and the four church leaders agreed to step up and take on the added responsibility. Obviously, I also agreed, after all, I'm here to help. And Steve purchased the tickets.

Then things started spiraling: the elementary school administration said that the kids could not have that many absences in a school year; one of the church leaders had a crisis of faith and quit making it to church on Sundays, another leader's wife was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and their car quit working on the way home from church one day requiring an astronomical repair, another leader had never preached before and wasn't sure he was called to do that, another leader's wife suddenly had a mass on the back of her neck that was causing debilitating headaches. 

The temptation was strong to pull the breaks since a lot of the church stuff would fall on me if people didn't come through, but I kept coming back to the same point:

We sought God's guidance, specifically, and he answered, specifically. We stepped out in faith, we needed to continue taking those steps of faith. So, we kept praying and moving forward.

Let's fast-forward to today. Our newly formed worship team led the songs for the first time, instead of Steve and Priscila. The leader who wasn't sure if he was called to preach preached his first sermon and did a great job! The leader's wife with the mass on her neck got that resolved with physical therapy several weeks ago. In fact, she's in the picture above on the far left. The wife of the leader with a crisis of faith started praying for her husband purposefully and they are both back to being actively involved. The wife with fibromyalgia was also there today with her husband and daughter. Her spirits are up and it looks like the insurance has scheduled a surgery for her next month to take care of some internal stuff that's been affected by her illness. (You can tell I'm really good at understanding all that medical stuff, huh?) Steve and Priscila have loaned their family a car while they save up and decide whether to fix their car or purchase a replacement.

Now let me tell you how God resolved the school issue. After several meetings between Steve, Priscila and the administration, a loophole was discovered. Students can only be held back on even years. Natalee is wrapping up fifth grade, so even if she fails all her classes due to missed assignments, and even if the absences are counted against her, they can't hold her back. It probably won't even come to that because God has given her favor with her teachers and they have given her assignments she can do to fill in the ones she will miss. Miah's teachers have agreed to do the same so he is eligible to start high school in September.

I should insert that verse above here again. Instead, just go back and read it. Waiting on the Lord doesn't mean that we sit on our hands until God comes through. It means we move forward with what we already know, trusting Him to come through with the unknown. We had steadfast minds because we saw God answer our initial requests and we trusted that he hadn't changed his mind, nor would he leave us out to dry in the rain. Thanks also to Tenerife prayer warriors who have been praying for us. (If you would like to get weekly prayer updates, sign up here) We don't lose hope when we see people moving away, we fight for them through prayer. And we don't fear the future because God keeps us in perfect peace.

What a wonderous thing that is.

In other awesome news, Miah got baptized on Friday. For about a month, Steve and I have been doing a discipleship study with Miah and a couple neighbor teens. Daniela and Adrian live just a few doors down from the Dyes. When we got to the topic of baptism, Miah (13) said he was ready to be baptized. Daniela (15) and Adrián (13) were not ready, and their dad told us so. I'm beginning to notice that parents here tend to hold their kids back from getting baptized. Especially, the ones who have come from other churches see baptism as a commitment to the church where you're baptized instead of how Peter referred to baptism as an act of repentance, for the forgiveness of your sins, and to receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).

Since the church doesn't have a baptistry, we met with some friends at the beach. It was extra special that Hadrami was back from the States and able to attend.

Earlier this month, I got to accompany the Dyes and Mama Emma to Hadrami's parents' home for a Ramadan meal. The father, Lebatt, is in white. The mother, Lalla, is in yellow next to me on the right. And their youngest son, Mohamed, is on the far left and looks just like his older brother Hadrami. Hadrami was visiting friends in the States and was sad to miss this special meal. We posed on the couch for the photo, but ate the meal sitting on the floor around the table. The food was truly delicious! I'm hoping for an opportunity to visit Lalla someday so she can teach me to make at least the lentil soup. The family absented themselves for a little while so they could wash and pray, closing their fast for the day. 

I mentioned to them that my previous experience in a Muslim home was different because the women could not be around the men even at meals. They asked where those people were from. When I told them they were from Afghanistan, they shook nodded in understanding and then shook their heads in sadness explaining that the Taliban had ruined the true spirit of Islam in that part of the world. I also got to hear Lebatt and Lalla's stories about escaping to Algeria with their families as children when Morocco took over Western Sahara. Their people, the Saharaui, have a very tragic story. Their family was able to escape the refugee camps because Lebatt was intelligent and was sent to study medicine in Cuba, instead of keeping him to fight. Every year it seems, he goes back to the refugee camps during his vacation to provide medical care and help out where he can. Those still living in the camps don't have a country or a government and therefore don't have passports to be able to travel. Algeria has allowed them to inhabit the land, but they do not offer citizenship or any kind of aid. Please pray for the Saharaui people and that God's light would shine through their darkness and give them hope of a better future.

The evening we went to Lebatt and Lalla's home coincided with the eclipse. By the time the earth spun enough for the phenomenon to make its way to Europe, it was nighttime. Fun fact, you can't see solar eclipses at night. The Canary Islands was one of the few places "they" said that it would be visible on this side of the Atlantic. Well, in the photo above you can see my view of the eclipse. We were already walking to dinner at the appointed time. Ramadan meals are only after sundown. To be honest, I'd rather share a meal with the Nagi family any day over watching an eclipse.

In March, Priscila, Mamá Emma, and I hopped on a plane to Mallorca via Madrid to visit our friend Katina who moved there in January for a job. Katina is originally from Venezuela and has lived in Miami and Tenerife at different times. She was baptized last summer when she participated with our church. She was working odd jobs and sleeping on a friend's couch just a half block from where we have our meetings when she got the opportunity for a job taking care of an older woman on the island of Mallorca, Spain, located in the Mediterranean (red dot on the far right on map above, Tenerife is the two red dots on the left). For two months she couldn't find a church to join there and she was getting discouraged because logging in to Facebook live each week just isn't the same. 

We got to spend a couple days with Katina to encourage her and explore the island a bit. On Wednesday night we attended the mid-week service of a church we found online. The preacher is a missionary from the States, his wife is a missionary kid who grew up on the field in Mexico and thus her Spanish is much softer than the brusk local Spanish. Many of the mid-week attenders are from Venezuela and the services are bilingual to accommodate a Philippine family who speaks English but not Spanish. Katina has been able to participate there and has begun a weekly Bible study with the missionary wife. God answered our prayers! We departed with a sense of having accomplished our mission.

I got to see my first olive Grove as we drove through the countryside of Mallorca. The photos I took from the moving car weren't very good, as you can imagine. So, I was absolutely thrilled when we found this park of Olive trees in the middle of the airport! FYI: olives fresh off the tree are not as tasty as when eaten from a jar or can.

I snapped a photo of these curious figurines in one of the tourist shops on the island of Mallorca. Priscila told me they were part of the holy week celebrations in Spain. At best, they looked ominous, and at worst, they looked KKK-ish to me. And after Palm Sunday, I saw pictures of these costumes in the news. I wasn't even looking for them.

Elena, with whom I study the Bible on Mondays, told me that she'd seen Antonio Banderas in the news hugging some girls because the Palm Sunday processions had been rained out in Malaga, Spain so they had to move things indoors. Yup, that's Antonio, above, consoling some of the people who were so disappointed because God rained on their parade... Literally. You notice they all seem to be dressed in robes with some sort of hood tied around their necks.

Once the procession starts, the hoods are raised to fully cover their heads and shoulders. I'm told the different colors denote different brotherhoods. I'm not clear on why they need to hide their faces or any of the why's or wherefore's. In the photos, the processions look very elaborate. Curiously, USA Today did not include pictures of the penitents with their hoods up in their picture spread of Palm Sunday celebrations. All in all, it seems a bit excessive in celebration of the day Jesus rode in to Jerusalem on a donkey.

Silly Things

I couldn't figure out how to photograph the first thing I'm going to mention, but it's something that drives me batty and I need to get it off my chest. The Canarians, I'm not sure if it extends to the rest of Spain, are obsessed with lip smacking. They use it as a speech crutch like Americans use "um" or "uh" or "etcetera". For example, "The other day, ...(smack) Tuesday, I went for coffee ...(smack) and a sandwich at that new place ...(smack) you know, where they have that juice that you like ... (smack) The kiwi with passion fruit juice." They use it to show their disgust, like a tsk. For example, "(smack) I don't like that place at all! (smack) The waiter is so rude!" They use it with an arm gesture to show they are upset at the tourist driver who cuts them off. I have to say, most native islanders are pretty chill behind the wheel of a car. The tourists, though, are a different story. (Yes, I'm looking at you Italians!) The wretched thing is, I find myself picking up the smacking in place of an "um" or a tsk. (smack)

Speaking of Italians, I've finally gotten to try gelato! Yes, more than once. What's your point? You can have some whenever you come to visit. I will take you to my favorite gelato shop where they "scoop" your gelato into the shape of a flower. And the flavors are amazing!

The other day we went to celebrated a friend's birthday at his favorite restaurant, a Chinese buffet. It was different from any Chinese restaurant or buffet that I have been to in Chile or the States, or even Ecuador. First of all, it's more than just Chinese; they also had sushi and other non-Chinese Asian dishes. And second, there is no buffet. Well, that's not true. The condiments and desserts are configured buffet style. But you go in and tell a waiter how many you are and they find you a table and hand you menus. The waiter takes your drink order and after they bring your drinks they start writing down the numbers for the items you want. Of course the birthday guy knew all his favorite numbers already because he likes going there so much. 

I loved it! First, because all the food had pictures! And second, the portions are small. For example, each order of sushi is only two pieces, so you can order several different ones to try without having to eat a whole roll. The "buffet" bit is that you pay a flat fee and eat all you want. A word of caution though, they will charge you additionally for any plate you don't finish. That way you can take it home and they avoid wasting food. Oh, and drinks are on top of the flat fee and there are no free refills. So, ration accordingly...

Steve and Priscila's first friends in their neighborhood were a family from Uruguay. They've moved away to a different neighborhood but still invite the Dyes for birthday. I've learned from previous birthdays that this family likes meat and lots of meat, to the exclusion of any and all vegetables. This time, it was mom's birthday so, instead of having a cookout, they invited us to a restaurant. The starter was typical Canarian grilled goat cheese covered in fruit jam. Usually, the jam is blueberry, but this time it was papaya.

Then, we got to choose a cut of meat. I asked for sirloin because it was the one I recognized. They brought out individual cast iron skillets of at least 12 ounces of meat with bell pepper sizzling along with the meat. Oh, and there were baskets of bread with Canarian mojo (bell pepper sauce that they put on everything) and bowls of olives. And, though it seems like a simple fare, it was filling and very tasty!

Last Sunday we went to eat at the only restaurant open besides McDonald's. It Colombian and the specialize in "Chinese" fried rice dishes. On the plate above, starting at 1 o'clock and going clockwise: breaded and fried pork filet, specialty pork/ham/chicken fried rice, vegetable and mixed meats fried rice, bbq pork fried rice, and finally french fries which are served with lime wedges because why not. Disclaimer: I'm not really sure what kind of meat was in each type of rice except the bbq pork. The important thing is it was delicious! And we got to share good time with friends.

Elena and I took out our friend Alexandra for her birthday. I picked a place that serves arepas, which is a Venezuelan cornbread shaped like a biscuit and grilled, then you cut it in half and fill it with various things like shredded chicken with mayo avocado. Alexandra had pointed out that place to me and when I asked her what filling she liked since she's vegetarian, she told me she likes hers with tuna or shrimp. Turns out she's pescatarian, not vegetarian. Also, turns out that's not her favorite arepa place like I thought. Oops. Well, everyone else ordered arepas, but I wanted a salad. I really like the salads I've tried in different places here. Well, everyone was disappointed with their choice because it was less than they thought, while mine was more. Turns out the salad was accompanied with french fries and some fried fish things. It was too much for me and didn't taste as good as it looked in the picture. Besides the fish things were pretty awful and greasy. We decided unanimously to never return there.

Ok, here's the last one. (I really need to write more than once a month because too much happens to fill you in on.) Priscila invited me to join her and Mama Emma who were meeting another Venezuelan friend for coffee at a place called Papelon. First, you need to know it was a very hot morning, so when they all changed their minds from coffee to a cold drink, I was onboard! Then the waiter comes back to ask what we wanted to eat. Each of them ordered an empanada. I ordered last and, as soon as I said what kind of sandwich I wanted, all the ladies at my table reacted as if I had ordered a side of cocaine with my drink. After a minute Priscila explained that they had the Venezuelan mentality of when you enjoy that specific cold drink with a Venezuelan empanada since you're ordering at a Venezuelan restaurant. Oh, I said. In my mind we were going out for a typical Canarian breakfast of coffee and a sandwich, and then subbed the coffee for a cold drink because it was a hot day. It's funny how unspoken expectations can cause ripples. I know the cold drink above looks like an Arnold Palmer, but imagine this instead: solid, ungranulated brown sugar melted down to liquid form, then stir in lemon juice and ice till you have the sweetest puckeriest chilly drink you can ever imagine. It is a Venezuelan specialty called Papelon, as is the restaurant with a Venezuelan flag painted across the front wall. How did I miss that we were going for Venezuelan syrupy lemonade and empanadas? Hehehe

Until next time,

Peace.

Erin

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