I know that many of the blogs that we write are about things that we do, what we are doing for the kingdom and so forth, I love to share these things with you all because I want to keep you updated with what your support is allowing us to do. I have had a lot on my mind lately and I typically seem to be a very transparent person so I would like to open up our lives to you all in a bit more personal way so that you can see into it a bit deeper. Sometimes when I write a blog or even read one that belongs to a missionary it has the typical fluffy hoo rahs of ministry in them, I don't really ever read or even feel comfortable my self to write some of the things we are faced with on a daily basis on the field, because first I don't ever want to come across as complaining, second I love the people that I come into contact with and have grace for them despite their shortcomings, and third I just assume people at home will simply not understand, and then I will hear all the reasons why I am crazy for doing this whole missions things. OH MY!!
But despite my hesitations I really want to share some personal things with you all so that you can be in prayer with us, for Mozambique and see our lives in more of a reality. Lets start with the obvious, WE ARE LIVING IN AFRICA, this is both amazing and challenging. When we moved here 3 months ago I didn't even know how to make rice – I Know Right- Jalapenos Taco Shop did just fine for me, I knew it was a 2:1 ratio but yea, I have had several black bottom pots (which aren't actually pots as we know them, basically its a plethora of melted down metals that they are making in the dirt in an open market). So, just getting in the habit of making all my food with limited resources was an adventure all on its own, but I have surprised my self, or maybe I’m just hungry?? There are things that you just have to get used to, that really are not a big deal but can be awkward for a bit, like buying fruit and hoping its not ridden with tiny little maggots inside – this isn't Walmart, you don't get a refund here, I have never seen so many fruit flies in my life , they seem to like my counters, but at least its not cockroaches right! Everyday my daughter asks me if the power is going to go out, we just say yes because I am sure at any point it will, so we may as well be prepared. These are all minor things to me and just make me laugh at where God has placed me, but some times my laughing turns to tears and I think “God help me through this”. As I raise my two young children in a third world country I cant help but see all the things they are “missing out on ”, with cousins having birthday parties, lake days, baseball games and water slides, camping, playing, well lets just face it- FRIENDS, I cant help but feel sad inside that I have decided to move my family to a country where my children cannot communicate with anyone their age, pretty much any age, my son and daughter are their own best friend and worst enemy, they have no one else but each other, so they play pretend and I have the joy of petting puppy doggies, twirling princesses and saying "ahoy" to pirates throughout the day. They have adapted as well as they can but I hear a lot about us flying back to America tomorrow, more like begging that we will and how much they miss home, which brings me to tears all over again. A few other things that we face with having youngsters in Africa is knowing that they can never leave our sight because frankly I don't know if I will see them again, teaching them that they cannot go outside with out shoes, because sand worms love toes, and digging these critters our of you kiddos feet is horrifying for a mother. One thing that I have found particularly hard is honoring the culture while still preventing sickness, many times my children are offered food that another child is eating off of, this is where speaking English and not being understood by locals is a benefit. Quite possibly the only benefit. They start school August 11th and are so excited to be learning, and doing something – well, normal kids do. There are many things that I could add to this list that have already come and gone, all of which I have had to deal with in my heart, and more to come as they hit each milestone, I count the cost daily and still cannot find a reason to throw in the towel. So as I mentioned above WE LIVE IN AFRICA and WOW I cant even believe that God had give my family the honor of doing this, when I say family, my kids are included in this, I heard once that when the Lord calls you to the mission field he knows you have kids and they were called too. As I walk with my kids through the curvy paths of the village in to the bush, I watch them play, dodging puddles ridden with fruit peels and trash, listening for motor bikes so they can move when they drive by, I think this is great, my kids are getting something in their childhood that not many western children get, thank you God for choosing us. They see and are a part of hundreds of people getting saved, healed and delivered, they are there when we give new shoes to orphans, when we pray for sick mamas on Sunday morning they place their precious hands on their heads or backs and “pray in their quiet voice”. I really am so blessed that my kids are “ missing out” on some things in life, because when we we choose to die to ourselves, that is when we truly live. This is just a few short things, I will be posting more blogs about daily things that we are facing, everyday we are staring in that face of the demonic, witchcraft, and corruption, we see poverty, war and we manage friendships in a country where people are so easily persuaded they could turn their back on you in an instant, I want to share these personal things with you, and invite you into our world, and in return I ask for prayer, not prayer for me to make it, but prayer for lives to be changed and a nation to be turned to their Father, because when they know Him, they will know LOVE. - Tawnya
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As July comes to a close I look back and think WOW this was a BUSY month!!It started with Eric having to take a quick trip to Maputo to get a new passport ( the municipal office here in Dondo “lost” his.) After weeks of government communications, police reports and tribunal hearings they ruled in our favor that the Dondo municipal office is to pay all fees and flights that we have had to pay to get a new passport. Its been a month since this ruling and we haven't had a knock on the door yet. It has been quite the adjustment coming from America to Mozambique and seeing the structure or lack of in the government/officials. It's an area that needs continual prayer for breakthrough, corruption is a very common thing here especially in anyone who holds any sort of title, please stand in prayer over this area. We also had the amazing opportunity to have Kenzie and Laura (two young ladies that we had in our youth group years ago) come and spend three short weeks with us. We did six outreaches, many village house to house visits and hospital ministry one of the days. Again we saw many healed, saved and delivered on these outreaches. Not only was it amazing to do ministry along side of these ladies and see them bring the gospel to the people of Mozambique but it was our privilege for them to come all the way to our side of the world and be a part of our everyday lives. It is one thing for us to write a blog and post some photos of where we live, our new friends, and what we do, but to actually have people who we know come and live with us, even for a short while, is so honoring. I have asked the girls to please write a blog that I can share with you in their own words, there were many things that happened spiritually that are better told by the person that encountered them. One particular night on outreach we went to a village about an hour and a half drive into the unknown, Eric delivered the Gospel message and around 100 people raised their hand for salvation, there were about 400 people there that night so we decided to do corporate healing, many raised their hand for healing and many raised their hand after declaring they were healed, God is so amazing. I was standing to the side a bit and a pastor came to me and told me that a woman was needing prayer because she had a hard time hearing in her left ear, as I prayed for her she began to manifest ( which is not uncommon) and then after a short time stopped and said she was better, the same pastor told me that the woman two people down from her could not hear in her left ear, I prayed for her but only saw slight improvement, a few minutes later there had formed a short line and after praying for about five people who were having a hard time hearing in their LEFT ear I got the hunch that there was definitely a spirit over that area of deafness, we called all the deaf or hard of hearing upfront - we prayed for many more people that night and a several testified to being healed. After the girls went home we sat around all day sobbing eating bon bons (you can actually buy these here) - in mourning. Then we packed our bags and headed to Zimbabwe to renew our visas (this means we have been here for 3 months already ). Crossing over the border was quite the adventure to say the least but we managed to get to the other side, after arriving at the Mozambican consulate in Zimbabwe we realized that we were very unprepared and had none of the correct documents to renew our visas, so we ran around trying to get what we needed with little prevail, after four days we crossed back over into Mozambique with a visa stamped with Residencia on it. We have 30 days to apply for a dire to get a one year temporary citizenship permit. While in Zimbabwe we had some good moments despite the chaos, we woke up Sunday morning to dozens of monkeys running ramped on the grounds around our hotel (even one trapped inside), the kids loved it (us too). Later this day we were out for a drive through the Vumba mountains which over look the border of Mozambique and Zimbabwe and we came across a group of baboons crossing the road, then to top the day off we went to a nature reserve and saw a crocodile and two elephants. We are home now, we got some flower beds put in at our house and we planted a bunch of plants and STRAWBERRIES!! It has been an exceptional three months here, we are still doing language learning everyday and planing outreaches, visits and seminars. We are excited for what is to come and the support that we have from home. We love you and miss you all. We would love to hear from you- God Bless You all The Weavers |
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