I wish I could say it has rained - it has not!

Hi!!

I wish I could say it has rained - it has not! The smaller trees (mongolos)
and the bushes are beginning to dry up. The sky has been overcast -
normally in January when it is overcast you can count on rain every other
day but we have had only a drop or two - nothing that even begins to wet the
ground.

The bright side we can see is that selling the cattle means we'll have money
to buy the fencing without having to borrow it from the bank! We made a
drive around the boundary of the farm - 56 km - it took most of a day!

Stirling went to Lubango today to take Jasper, our neice, to catch her
flight tomorrow. He will at the same time pickup the Latimers and the
Smiths who are arriving - it worked out very well the timing of these
comings and goings! The plan is for Stirling to come back tomorrow
afternoon but it all depends on how the Latimers and Smiths feel after their
long journeys! Pray for travel mercies - especially Louise Latimer who is
recovering from a sinus infection.

On Monday Stirling, Paulo, and I went to Chiange (3 hours from here) to see
about new teachers for Tchincombe but also to visit Pastor Jacob and Maria.
Please keep them in your prayers! They moved from here two months ago and
in Chiange they don't know anyone so they are having to make friends and
survive in a new place. Their house has doors and roof but no windows! For
them it is good that it is not raining! Pray for them to find good friends,
pray for Jacob as he preaches on Sundays and visits neighbors that he will
be filled with love and compassion for that community!

We learned on the visit to Chiange that on the 24th of January the
government will allocate teachers to their posts. We plan to go back to
Chiange on that day in hopes that it will encourage the board of education
to assign teachers to us! The two teachers that we had last year live in
Lubango and want to go home every weekend but that is impossible. So we are
hoping for teachers who would like to make their home at Tchincombe! The
ideal would be a couple!

Paulo took the measurements for the windows of Jacob and Maria's house and
we also plan on the 24th to deliver windows to them!

Jerry and Louise Latimer will be bringing a projector and the Jesus film.
Pray for wisdom about when and to whom we should show the film. We'd like
to show it in Chiange to help Jacob kick off that ministry. We'd also like
to show it in the villages where our workers come from. A few years ago we
showed the film in a place called Yanja. In the morning a lady who had
watched the film said she thought all night about 'that man' in the film!

I sent photos to town today to update the blog! It will take a day or two
but they should appear soon!

THANK YOU!!!!!
Love,
Donna for all of us