An Update...Finally!

Oh man, are we ever late on this update. I don't know if it's the southern hemisphere or living so close to the equator, but the time sure does seem to pass by quicker here.


The Work


Having lived in Diego for six months now, we are now fully settled into a good routine. Adam is still going to the village (Mahamasina) on Tuesdays, while April, Emma, and Corinne are still hard at work with homeschool. Along with that, April has a few women she meets with for Bible study on a weekly basis and Adam will begin studying with a young man this week.

April and a couple of the ladies in her Bible study

We have kicked up our evangelistic efforts in the city. We both go out at least once a week now to share the gospel with the people of Diego. Adam usually goes to a park in the center of town; there are always guys hanging out who are almost always willing to share a bench and talk. April takes to the streets closer to our home or our teammates' home. Our hope in all of this, of course, is to make disciples which in turn results in the starting of new churches.

Adam teaching in Mahamasina

To be honest, sharing the gospel here is actually not that difficult since most people we talk to are willing to listen to what we believe; as we may have mentioned before, most Malagasy people are surprised that a white person speaks their language, so for the most part that gains us instant credibility with them. As it relates to gospel conversations, the most striking thing of all is most of them already have some mental framework for Christianity or at least religion in general; only one person so far has stated that he has no religion. While this is tiring work, especially doing it in another language, we find fulfillment in it as we seek to be faithful to the Lord's call.

The Girls
Emma and Corinne are doing well. They now have Malagasy friends who come over to play several times a week. They are both progressing well through school, although as all of you teachers out there know, some days are better than others. A few things they've studied recently are how God made everything, which involved learning some really amazing facts about sea animals. Did you know that in order to eat, a starfish will pry open a mollusk, and push its stomach out of its body into the mollusk? It's like it turns itself inside out for a good meal. We recently took a field trip to the beach to see in person some of the things we studied. When we see the awesome details of His creation, it causes us to praise Him even more.

Emma is really taking some solid steps on her spiritual journey (even as she proves from time to time that her flesh is not going down without a fight). Adam writes a short devotional for her everyday with verses to read and questions to answer; she spent most of her time recently learning what it means to be a true follower of Jesus. Her "Bible Time" is one of the first things she does everyday. Emma and April have been reading through the Little House on the Prairie book series, and we've started watching some of the episodes from the television show (it's surprising how much that era reminds us of Madagascar today).

Corinne is beginning to enjoy school more and more. She's learning to read and seems to have a natural gift for math. One of Corinne's favorite activities is figuring out ways to get as dirty as possible; she could give any American boy a run for his money. We continue to teach Corinne about God's love, and just this morning (Oct 23) after talking with us she expressed her desire to put her trust in Jesus for salvation. We praise the Lord that both of our young daughters have now received God's free gift of salvation.


The Learning
While the above gives a snapshsot of what we've been doing, we'd also like to share briefly what we've been learning. The Lord has really been shaping and molding us in our time here. In a lot of ways, we feel like different people now; guess that's just part of learning to live in another culture/country. Our trust in God has deepened as He has led us through the frustration that arises from language and culture acquisition (those two things are no easy tasks, nor are they complete).

Additionally, we are learning what it means to abide in the Lord. This has been impressed upon our hearts through life in general and through our work here. While it doesn't take moving to another country and preaching/teaching in another language to shed light on the utter necessity of abiding in Christ, at the very least it shines a light on that necessity in a different way. We do not doubt at all that apart from Christ we truly could do nothing. Furthermore, the more we abide in Christ and seek to follow the leadership of the Spirit, the less fear we have in proclaiming the gospel.


Prayer Requests
Thanks to all of you who have been praying for us; we need your prayers more than you know. Please continue to pray for us as we seek to work faithfully here.

Requests:

1. For our family--that we love each other well and provide a godly example to the Malagasy people.
2. For our team here in northern Madagascar--our supervisors Michael and Michelle are heading to the States soon for their stateside assignment. Pray for rest and good visits with family and friends. Our other teammates the Berrys, like us, are still learning language and seeking to develop relationships with Malagasy people. Pray we would be effective in our work.
3. For Emma--that she would continue to grow in her faith and that she would keep working hard in school.
4. For Corinne--that she would grow strong in her new faith and that she would continue to do well in school.
5. For our work--for April's Bible study with the ladies. Adam is beginning to study with a young man on Sundays. Also, please pray for our evangelistic efforts and for new works to begin.
6. For the Malagasy people--that many would see their need for Christ and put their trust in him.