Off to Mozambique

Scott left for Maputo yesterday, one of the main cities in Mozambique, in order to work on our registration. For us to work there full time, we have to have permission from the government, a process that never moves quickly. When I asked him how things went today, he told me it was like taking one step forward and three steps back. It's all a matter of visiting government offices, speaking to the right people, and making sure your paperwork continues through the long line of offices and stamps.

One huge praise regarding our upcoming move has to do with Gabriel. We've been testing him all week to see if he can tolerate a curative dose for malaria. He is highly allergic to the preventative and with the deadly dangers of the disease, moving would not be an option if he couldn't tolerate the medicine. We are praising God, because Gabriel hasn't had any side effects! For us, this is continued assurance that this move is what God wants for us.

Please continue to pray as we negotiate through this difficult process.

Blessings,

Lisa

School system

Janelle recently shared some interesting insights into the African school system. Her experience in particular is with Zimbabwe. The system is based on the British system they inherited from colonial days. With school fees difficult to afford, it's exciting to see some of our orphans excel despite the circumstances facing them and their country. This is a photo of some of our Zambian orphans.

GRADES 1-7 (called “junior school”) At the end of grade 7, the children will write a battery of exams and these will determine into which “stream” they will be placed when they enter high school (called senior school in Zimbabwe). The children are “streamed” according to their abilities to perform.

FORM 1-4 Form 1 is the first year of senior school. At the end of Form 2, they will again write a battery of exams, but these again will only determine which stream they remain in. They do not eliminate the children from school if they don’t pass. At the end of Form 4, they write the very important “O Level” exams (O for “Ordinary” level). These exams will last over a period of several weeks and the children will write several extensive exams in every subject they have studied. These “O Level Exams” determine whether they are allowed to continue in school. To get a “pass” at “O Level”, the student must pass at least 5 “O Level” subjects. But just getting a pass in 5 of your O Levels doesn’t ensure that you get to continue on in school.

Only those students that get very good passes in a number of subjects are granted a place in a school to do “A Level” studies. For the vast majority of students, this is the end of normal (or ordinary) high school. Only a few are permitted to go on to do “A Levels”.

“A Levels” When a child is “allowed” to do A Levels, they will normally choose only 3 subjects, and they will do extensive studies in these subjects for two years. At the end of those 2 years, they will write a battery of exams over those 3 subjects. Only those students who do exceptionally well in the “A Level” exams will be permitted and given a place in a university.

University There are only about 3 universities in the country and there is great competition for those places. At university, the government pays for fees and boarding. We help our children with transportation to and from classes, and the university. We also supply incidental things they need. There are no “part time” jobs available for the children, and no way to make money. So we help them where they need it, financially, as well as standing by them emotionally and spiritually as they move up and out of their homes.

Children have done very well if they pass “O Levels” well, they have done very very well if they pass “A Levels”, and they have been exceptional if they are accepted into a university.

We rejoice that we have had one of our orphan children who has completed university. We have now had 4 of the children pass their “A Levels” well enough to be accepted to university. And we have also had a number pass very well in their “O Levels”. We are very proud of each one of them. They have done so well considering their difficult home situations!! We praise God for each one of them.

Coming soon, update on the recent trip to Zambia, and how to win a Taste of Africa (hint, everyone signed up for my newsletter or blog feed will be automatically entered in the drawing. Sign up for both and your name will be entered twice!)

Blessings,

Lisa

Spring Has Sprung!

It's been an extremely busy week, with little time for anything extra like blogging. Scott's been teaching every night this week at our Bible Training Center for Teachers. This is held at Allen and Janelle's house the third week of every month. It's a great opportunity for those who would like to attend a Bible school but don't have the financial means or opportunity. Here in South Africa, we run the classes in Tzaneen and have been active in training teachers to run the courses in other places around the country.

We've also been working out more of the details for the food relief program for our orphans. We have several volunteers from here who will help drive the food into the country. For more information and regular updates, please click here.

Scott leaves next week for Mozambique to continue working on getting our residency papers that will allow us to move into the country. He'll also be trying to secure housing for us. Please continue to pray for this transition as there are still many details that have to be worked out, many which are time consuming yet essential.

On the writing side, I'm excited to announce a sale to Love Inspired Suspense! Final Deposit will come out in September 2008. They've already given me a deadline to have my cover art details in by Monday morning, so things are already rolling.

Interested in winning a free copy of my Christmas novella collection Montana Mistletoe that's due out in September? Check out the official Montana Mistletoe blog spot here for details of the contest and our upcoming blog tour.

In the midst of my own busy schedule, I've been reminded of how important it is to not let the urgent outweigh what's really important. Paul said, "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." II Corinthians 4:18

Be blessed today!

Lisa

PHOTOS OF SPRING FROM OUR GARDEN

Zimbabwe Orphan Relief

If you've been following my blog posts the past few weeks, you've heard about the urgent situation facing the people of Zimbabwe. After the River Glen Church hosted a camp for the orphans AOM supports, many of them through sponsors, we realized that with the current food shortage in the country, something had to be done to ensure these children have enough food to eat. People are leaving the country at an estimated 4000 per day, but our orphans are some of the most vulnerable. They can't leave, and the food they need is becoming more and more scarce.

Below is a video with more information on what we are planning to do, but we need your help. If you personally can help, or if you are a part of a ladies class, Bible study group, or know of a church who might be willing to be a part of this relief project, please let them know about the need.

We've set up a blog at http://food4zim.blogspot.com with all the details.



Thanks!

Lisa

Flying with Eagles

If I look ahead at the next few months, it's easy for me to find myself in a bit of a panic. Moving to another country is simply not easy. We have to work with governmental offices to get required permission to stay, find housing when options are extremely limited, start learning Portuguese, make sure the kids stay up with their school work during all the changes, keep on track with my editor deadlines. . .like I said, it's not easy. And that doesn't even begin to add into the formula the actual ministry work which is the reason we're doing all of this.

Stress, no matter what's going on in your life, is always there at one level or another, so I know you can understand what I'm talking about. Ever have those mornings when you wake up and wish you could bury your head under the blankets so you don't have to deal with life? Even good things cause stress and leaving us needing to come up for air now and then. I'm very excited about moving to Mozambique, but that doesn't take away all the stress of wondering how in the world I can find the energy to do this.

I often read through the Psalms when the worry hits. David has a way of reminding me that God hasn't left, and that He cares for every aspect of my life. Yesterday, I needed a spiritual pick-me-up, so I turned to the Psalms. On my way there, though, something in Isaiah caught my eye.

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary, and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who put their hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31

This is probably a familiar verse to many, but it's such a powerful reminder. We don't put our hope in money, careers, possessions, or even relationships. We put our hope in God. And He in turn will give us the strength we need for each day.

One of the most incredible things I've ever done here in Africa is a flight we took last summer on a small plane. We flew over Victoria Falls and the pilot got permission to circle over the falls. The view from the air was amazing and it's an experience I'll never forget. I was flying with the eagles over one of the most spectacular places God created.

He wants us to put our hope in Him. To trust Him completely for what you need.

Put your hope in God, and fly!

Enjoy the view!

Lisa



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Off to Zambia

Early this morning, Scott, Allen, and Janelle, along with a South African Christian, left on one of Mercy Air's five-passenger planes for Zambia. They will be making three stops along the way for fuel and clearing customs, which makes for a long trip, but much shorter than if they were driving.

The rest of the week will be spent training leaders from Zambia and Zimbabwe. They will be discussing how to build evangelistic house churches, Moses vs. Joshua leadership, church planting movement principals, as well as sharing and prayer time.

Please pray that this trip is a blessing to both our team and the leaders.

Lisa

Cross Country Boys!

Last weekend the boys ran cross country. It was Jayden's first race, so you can imagine how much he enjoyed it. Living in a rural area means we travel farther to sporting events. The nice thing about this race, though, was that it was at the entrance of Kruger Game park, so I packed a picnic lunch, and we made a day of it inside the park. Unfortunately, we saw few animals, but it was still a great day.



As you can probably tell by this post, one of my favorite past times is to spend time in the game park. Here's a link to a home video (not mine) taken at Kruger National Game park. It's about seven minutes long, but this is unbelieveable footage. You can check it out here.

Blessings,

Lisa

Running

Okay, so I'm not really talking about exercise here. No. It's been an incredibly hectic week with no internet that has put me behind on a few crucial projects. Isn't it interesting how computers, meant to make our lives easier, instead only adds to our work load?

Ministry wise, Scott is preparing for a trip to Zambia on Wednesday, then will be teaching here in Tzaneen for a week the day after he returns. Please pray that his time in Zambia especially, with leaders from Zimbabwe and Zambia, will be beneficial and encouraging.

In the next few days, I'll be posting what you can do to help those suffering in Zimbabwe. Scott and I have felt moved to organize monthly food relief for our orphans as the food situation becomes critical.

So, as I catch up with life, thought you might enjoy a recent picture of the kids with a couple of their friends.

Blessings!

Lisa

Kaskar

One of the enjoyable things about living away from the city is the sense of community. Sports events become family outings full of food, games, vegetable stands, and local craft items for display. With the twangy sound of Afrikaans music playing in the background and the smell of vors rolls in the air--forget the American hot dog when there's a thick meat vors, a fresh bun, and tangy sauce around--events like the annual kaskar bring familiar faces together for a day of fun beneath the African sky.

Here's a taste of last weekends kaskar.

Enjoy!

Lisa

Massachusetts Brides

Two days ago I received a copy of Massachusetts Brides hot off the press! I'm always so excited to hold my 'baby' for the first time after putting in so many months of work.

Massachusetts Brides is a collection of three of my Heartsong Presents historicals set in Massachusetts in the late 1800's.

Here's the blurb from the back of the book:

Three Massachusetts women find themselves in difficult situations mired with past tragedy, mistakes, and prejudice. Will love help ease their burdens?

After losing her husband and daughter in a fire, Michaela Macintosh never planned to love again. She certainly didn’t imagine that her heart would be torn between two very different men—her brother-in-law and a handsome widower. Would the Lord desire her heart to be safe with Philip or rekindled with Eric?

When Rebecca Johnson discovers she’s about to make the biggest mistake of her life, she cancels her plans and moves to Boston. There she takes a position as a seamstress in a furniture shop where she hopes to mend her broken heart. Luke Hutton stops by the shop on an errand for his mother and falls at once for the dark-haired beauty who works there.

Adam Johnson’s brother was killed by a Polish man, and he judges an entire people based on one man’s actions. When he falls for a Polish woman named Lidia, will his head or heart win out?

This book is available this month at your local Christian bookstores and Walmart. If you would like to buy a signed copy from me, please email me here.

I have a short video of the kids racing last weekend in the area kaskar competition, but our Internet has been down all week and is not fast enough today for me to do much, so you can look forward to finding out exactly what is a kaskar competition in the next few days.

Blessings!

Lisa

Orphan Camp Update

If you haven't taken a few minutes to read about what is happening in Zimbabwe with the orphan camp, please take a few minutes to read the River Glen Blog. What a moving and challenging journal. I've included an excerpt from the blog below. I'm also planning to put together a short video once Allen and Janelle return.



Sunday, July 29th

"Lynn Nuzzo our children’s director and I bring you greetings on behalf of our Africa team from a Salvation Army camp far down a rutted dirt road near the heart of the Matopos National Park. Here the mountains are rugged and huge boulders balance magnificently on one another, on the top of the peak. On the wall of the building where we meet most it is stated that the mission of the camp is to support the psychosocial development of children. Here each of our 55 children here been wounded by the loss of one parent or more to AIDS.

First of all I want to thank you for your prayers. We have been safe in the midst of Zimbabwe’s deepening economic and political distress. Just 2 hours ago we finished our 3 day ZBS camp. We have felt God’s hand at work in many ways. Getting our supplies to camp after an unexpected delay, getting a flat tire not in the remote bush but in the city, seeing relationships form with the children and offering them spiritual encouragement from Isaiah 11 which pictures God’s new earth and from Psalm 23, the Lord is my Shepard.

We had a wonderful morning worship today where the children sang for us with rhythmic African movement. We gave the children a decorative cross, and I preached from Ephesians 1 reminding them that God knew their names even before the foundations of earth were laid. . ."

Click here to read more.

Thank you River Glen for all you've done to bless these sweet, sweet children!!!

Lisa

Zimbabwe Orphan Camp

I've shared several times this past year about the orphan situation in southern Africa and what God is doing to bring some relief to these children's lives. The River Glen Church, outside Chicago, supports 60 of our orphans in Zimbabwe. They have created a blotspot to keep us up to date with what is happening with the camp they are running for the children this weekend. Feel free to check it out when you have a moment.

Blessings,

Lisa

More on Zimbabwe. . .

Another update from Janelle.

"As many of you know, Zimbabwe has been in both political and economic turmoil for a number of years. It seems that the problems of all these years are now converging to bring on the population of this country great times of hardship. Those who have thrived in the past are now struggling to survive, those who have always struggled are now truly becoming desperate. Even the surrounding countries are concerned that they will be inundated with thousands of staving people.

And of course, the families of our children are those who are the most desperate.

Please pray for each family and caregiver as they look at inflation up to 20,000% per year and empty shelves and no food for their families. This is a time for totally depending on God for the next day's food."

Please Pray:
1. Thank God for all his provision up to this time.
2. Pray that God will give encouragement and lift the hearts of each caregiver and each child while the whole country cries in their desperation.
3. Pray that God will miraculously provide for these families.
4. Pray that God will give us, AOM, wisdom as we work to help each family.

A Light in Zimbabwe

If you have been following the news, you might have read about the continued collapse of Zimbabwe. The situation is incredibly bleak for a country that is literally starving. There is little food on the shelves, inflation is the highest in the world, and many have turned to prostitution in order to feed their children.

Allen and Janelle left yesterday for Bulawayo. Here's what she wrote in her orphan blog.

"This is going to be a very exciting time for our Themba children (this is our orphan program that helps support many of these children in hardship). From among the members of the River Glen Presbyterian Church of Naperville, Illinois, 60 children are sponsored and prayed for regularly! And next week, this church is sending out a group of 9 people to visit the homes of different children and to hold a weekend camp for 50 of our children. Lots of Bible lessons, stories, songs, and games are planned for the children. It promises to be an wonderful and exciting week for all of us!!

Thank God for this gracious church that has taken these children into their hearts and are working out that love in very tangible ways!"

PLEASE PRAY:

1. Thank God for the love within the River Glen church for the children of Zimbabwe.

2. Ask God for safety and to bless their trip over and all the travel that will be involved.

3. Pray for safety and protection as we travel within this troubled country.

4. Pray for JOY to fill the hearts of the children, and to fill our hearts as we minister and are ministered to by the Lord.

If you'd like to learn more about a tangible way to help the people in Zimbabwe, please check out our ministry website.

Blessings,

Lisa

Happy Seventeen years!

Yesterday Scott and I celebrated our seventeenth wedding anniversary! We enjoyed dinner at the Coach House, a lovely restaurant up in the mountains.

Love you, Scott. Looking forward to another seventeen plus years together!

Lisa

Table Mountain

Looking over Cape Town, high about the Atlantic Ocean, lies a sheer mountain rise called Table Mountain. The five minute ride by cable car takes you up the one kilometer precipitous, transporting you to a view over looking Cape Point to the south and beyond, the expansive ocean. The flat-topped crest can be seen 200 km out to sea, and white clouds billowing above the sandstone have been appropriately called a “tablecloth” at times. As you can see by the following photos, the view from this tabletop is incredible.

Enjoy!

Lisa

Ministry Update

As I mentioned a few days ago, we have some ministry news to share. And as I share with you, I’d also like to ask for your fervent prayers regarding our future. Both Scott and I consider it a blessing to live in South Africa and work across southern Africa. It’s a continent of beauty, but more importantly, a place filled with people who need to know the saving grace of their Creator.

For the past few months, I’ve posted photos of our work and dreams regarding Mozambique. Our hearts have been pulled with a desire to work there full time, while at the same time God’s hand has been clearly moving in the same direction. As the Fuentes continue to train and disciple new Christians, the workload continues to grow.


This prayerful process hasn’t been easy in many aspects. We enjoy living here with family close by. The kids are blessed to go to a good school and we have friends and the conveniences of living we wouldn’t have in Mozambique. But we also know that the decision has to be made by looking beyond the physical.


The final decision hasn’t yet been made, as there are still details to be worked out. We have sought the leadership and spiritual oversight of our board and will be meeting with them by phone this weekend. We also have to ensure that our oldest son is able to take the curative medicine for malaria as he’s highly allergic to the preventive medicine. Please continue praying for this work and possible transition for our family in the next few months. I’ll keep you updated as to our plans.

Blessings,

Lisa

Duiker Island

South of Cape Town lies Cape Peninsula, a stretch of land that splits the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Hout Bay is a quaint stop along the way, and for those interested, one can take a glass bottom boat out to Duiker Island to see Cape fur seals sunning themselves on a small rocky island southwest of Hout Bay. For many years, these Cape fur seals have been prized for their pelts, meat, and blubber, but are now more protected. We so much enjoyed the close encounter with the animals and their habitat. I've posted a slide show below with some of the photos from this part of our trip and short boat ride to the island.

Also, I recently sent out my first Yahoo! Newsletter From the Heart of Africa. What’s in it for you? Contests, recipes, and other book related news. With five books coming out in the next few months, there will be several contests, and if you’re signed up for my newsletter, you’ll be automatically entered! In this first July newsletter, three people won a free copy of Tara’s Gold. Feel free to sign up for this newsletter that I will send out every couple months, as well as the opportunity to win copies of Massachusetts Brides and Montana Mistletoe for my next drawing in September.



Blessings,

Lisa



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I'm back!

After driving 16 hours across South Africa we're home! We had a wonderful time seeing Cape Town and the SA coast for the first time, and God blessed us with some needed quiet time and rest. This part of South Africa truly is a beautiful piece of God’s creation.

Unfortunately, my plans to post a photo journal along the way didn't work. The "always on" hot spot we planned to use wasn't on. So instead, I'll be posting several slide shows for the next week or so that I think you will enjoy. Many of the photos we took are simply stunning. The weather was perfect, allowing us a chance to take a boat ride to see some seals, view penguins along the coast, and even bogie board in the Indian Ocean. (The kids are hooked on this new sport!)

On another note, I’d like to ask continued prayer for our ministry. God is doing wonderful things in Mozambique, and we are excited to see what the future holds. I will also have some important ministry news to share soon, so stay tuned for that.

Blessings!

Lisa




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Had to share. . .

Yesterday I received a 'hot off the press' copy of Tara's Gold from my editor. I didn't expect to be as excited as I was when I opened the package, but just because it's not my first book didn’t take away any of the thrill. My publisher did such a wonderful job on the cover and presentation. It simply looks beautiful. I even had to delve into the story last night and read over halfway through it.

I planned to share a photo, but it keeps coming out looking like a negetive, so I'll try later, but I did post my first newsletter today. Congradulations to Donna, Dawn, and Jeanie who each won copies of Tara's Gold. I'll be holding another drawing around August first for a free copy of Massachusetts Brides, so be sure and sign up here.

And if you missed the trailer, be sure and check it out here.

I'm hoping to journal our trip in the next few days through photos if we can manage the internet connection.

Blessings to each of you!

Lisa