Saturday Post -- 28/05/11

These days, I usually get the weekly blog post done and dusted first thing on a Saturday morning, usually in front of a Premier League game (or in today's case, furiously channel-surfing for any scraps of news from Wembley).

That was not so last week, when I had to log the update late afternoon on Friday, in anticipation of a very different start to the weekend. Here in Bolivia, the standard rendez-vous time for church youth groups is Saturday evening, our own group meeting from 7pm till 8.30pm. However, in a recent leaders' meeting, we sensed a need to freshen things up a little. So last Saturday, rather than wait till 7pm, we opted to leave the church at 8.30am and head to the Laguna Suarez for the morning, a local artificial lake resort. The usual clientele there tend to be fairly well-to-do, so we were allowed the freedom of the lake so long as we cleared off by lunchtime. It was a terrific morning and here are a few snaps to help set the scene (picture credit, once again, goes to fellow missionary Kenny Holt).


As is always the case on a Saturday evening, we kicked off things with a brief worship time, led by yours truly.


That was followed by a game and then some Bible teaching, led by Mariana (who can genuinely be classed as a youth leader as, unlike us, she's still relatively youthful). We continued in the series on The Purpose Driven Life, which we've been doing for about a month now, taking the theme for each 'day' as the weekly focus.



This was followed up by some time in small groups, Amanda and I both finding a spot on the dock. As ever, this was an important part of the session, but by this time the sun was climbing ever higher...


...and a couple of hours of this was the inevitable result.

We headed back to Trinidad, where we had a bite to eat for lunch before all going our separate ways again. The programme tweak helped to freshen things up, allowed us as leaders a little more time to get to know the young people, and excitingly for Amanda and me, afforded us our first free Saturday evening for some months.

Additionally, Amanda was able to spend some time with an older member of the group, Liria, someone who's only just started coming along, but who we both know very well due to her work in administration at FT. It's fair to say that Amanda hadn't exactly been actively pursuing a deeper relationship with Liria over the past months, but out of the blue, Liria told Amanda how much her friendship has meant to her. It was really humbling for Amanda and we had her round for lunch one day this week to try and strengthen the bond a little further. As far as we know, she's still seeking, so please pray for her.

The rest of the week saw the surgical campaign continue until Tuesday, so Amanda was on general nursing duties before switching back to Audiology on Wednesday. My work duties centred mostly around the website, creeping ever closer to launch, and the Community classes, which resumed on Wednesday.

Anyway, must dash. I'm teaching at the youth group tonight, so I need to put the finishing touches to that before heading for a big lunch, a big screen and a big game at Kenny's place this afternoon. As a great philosopher of our age once so eloquently put it, it's squeaky bum time!

Prayer
• For Craig as he teaches on the theme of ‘Created to Live Forever’ tonight at the youth group.
• For a deepening relationship between Amanda and Liria, and for opportunities to witness to her.

Praise
• For a great session with the youth group last Saturday and particularly for the opportunity to develop relationships with individuals that the morning provided.
• For continued progress with the new worship band this week.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda

(Post-)Saturday Post -- 22/01/11

First up, apologies if this week’s update arrives later than usual – we know a lot of you make a habit at the weekend of reading our update. I’m typing this up offline as we’ve now gone about two days without internet. Another severe deluge of rain on Thursday/Friday may have played its part in that – the networks here not yet robust enough to cope with adverse conditions. I will post as soon as possible.

Jessica has been settling into the pace of things nicely here. On Monday morning she had her volunteer’s induction (does that mean she was induced?) with Kenny and immediately settled into various nursing tasks. Mostly, she has been taking care of basic needs, such as cutting giant rolls of gauze into small strips, but now and again she’s provided assistance to Amanda in the afternoons in treating patients. And we’ve made sure she’s put to good use at home too! It’s been great to have an extra pair of hands to help cook, wash dishes etc. Most of all, it’s been really wonderful just having a familiar face around and we look forward to the remainder of the time we have with her.

Amanda has successfully managed to juggle her sister’s visit with her Audiology training course. This week, the participants applied the theory they’d learnt in the first week to FT patients. In addition, there was a closing exam. No prizes for guessing who got the highest score – though her mother may be curious as to where the other 10% went.

I’ve managed to compile all the main English class teaching materials for the year this week. This year, we’re hoping to run two classes simultaneously: one for absolute beginners and one for last year’s participants, as well as anyone else who feels capable enough to join at that level. The classes will also start alongside the school year in mid-February this year, which will give us a lot more time and flexibility (a crucial commodity in this society). Additionally, we learned over the course of the last year that a big incentive for Bolivians is simply receiving certificates – few things make them happier than a bit of paper saying they attended a particular class. So this year the classes are divided into four smaller modules which will last about six weeks each. I spent a lot of time last year chasing my tail when it came to English materials, so it’s great to be able to have the year in place so early, allowing me to concentrate, God-willing, on other matters such as FT’s library and the website.

Another noteworthy accomplishment this week was booking flights to Toronto for Jessica’s wedding in August. Though we have always planned on returning for this important family event, we had been dithering over this, waiting to see if there were any big shifts in the market in January. Sure enough, prices plummeted this week, so we made a move. The wedding is our main motivation for travelling but we’re looking to kill a few birds with the one stone. My family will be travelling to my uncle and aunt’s home in Virginia for two weeks to have a little reunion with us, which I’m obviously quite excited about. And we’re hoping to use the time to visit churches with which we have links, to update them on our ministry here in Trinidad.

By next weekend, that ministry will, unbelievably, be a year old. However, we’ll not be in Trinidad but in Santa Cruz, where we’re going to spend a few final days with Jessica before seeing her off the following Tuesday morning. No update, then, next weekend, but then again, depending on how long it takes the internet folk to sort themselves out, you might not even get this till then!

Prayer
• For Craig and co-worker Samy as they put the finishing touches to preparations for the resumption of the Community Classes on 7th February.
• For Jessica’s last week here and for safety as we travel, by road, to Santa Cruz next Friday evening.

Praise
• For Amanda’s successful completion of her course.
• For having the English class preparation out of the way.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda

Saturday Post -- 13/11/10

That’s Amanda with our faithful mutt, Arturo, a picture taken last week and one of her last known sightings round these parts.

I exaggerate, of course, though it’s true that, since FT’s General ENT surgical Campaña got going on Monday, I haven’t seen all that much of her, working, as she is, 12-hour shifts, doing clinical work in the mornings and joining the Campaña team in the afternoon. Amanda’s primarily been based in the new inpatients’ ward, which was opened on Monday and has certainly been put to use this week.


I can forgo a Monopoly partner for a week when so many needy cases are being helped. The Campaña continues until the end of next week, though, happily for Amanda, is punctuated by a holiday next Thursday, for the Beni region’s anniversary.

My work this week has mostly involved further website updating, so not too much of note to report, though this morning I spent some valuable time getting to know other notable Trinidad residents (see posts below). Given that it took me the best part of two hours to get them online, I hope regular readers will understand the brevity of today’s post.

Prayer
• For Amanda and the rest of FT’s health staff as they treat the Campaña patients.
• For Craig as he leads the morning meditations next week.

Praise
• For energy, particularly for Amanda, during a hectic week for her.
• For help for Craig as he preached at church last Sunday.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda

Saturday Post -- 06/11/10

We've just returned from our 6-monthly review meeting with the FT board, where we had the chance to discuss our plans for 2011. No messing around, here's a breakdown.

One of my main tasks this year has been to organise and promote the use of FT's library. I started out enthusiastically here, putting the books in order (it was that bad) but time has constrained me from doing more, such as assembling an index and acquiring texts. Therefore, I'll be re-focusing my energies here, as well as promoting titles which may be of use to people at the morning meditations. We have a great wealth of texts but little awareness among the staff of their benefits at the moment.

Additionally, FT's community education ministry, which takes place among local children and those who live with their parents in Trinidad's prisons, is somewhat short-handed at the moment in terms of staff, and so I've been asked to come on board to advise Samy Gutierrez (who regular blog readers will be familiar with) and assist in running the classes, which take place on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons.

Aside from these developments, I'll be pressing on with the website, tweaking the English classes to encourage a greater uptake next year, and continuing with my usual church commitments.

As mentioned last week, Amanda's language classes have just come to an end, freeing up her morning schedule, which she will now primarily devote to administrative tasks in the Health Area, including working on compiling the data for a Beni-wide survey which FT embarked on in 2009. There may also be an opening for her to take on a more hands-on role in FT's audiology work, supporting audiologist Odalis Arce, who could do with a hand at the moment. That possibility will be run by the general assembly later this month.

As Diego mentioned in the meeting, those days when we moaned about not having much to do seem like a long, long time ago now. But we're excited about our new range of tasks and looking forward to what the Lord has in store for us.

Looking forward has been the theme of the week, with a surgical campaña kicking off next week, for a fortnight. Unlike the campaña back in May, this one is a general ENT campaña and a team of surgeons from Spain will be here to support Diego and the staff, including Amanda. With around 6-7 cases per day, and Amanda often required well into the evening in post-surgery, I'm already mapping out my diet of televised sport and war movies for the fortnight. Before that, though, I'm due to preach this Sunday, so please be praying for that.

Prayer
• For patience and flexibility for both of us as we adapt to our new schedule.
• For Craig as he preaches this Sunday from 1 Samuel 22.
• For Amanda as she prepares to work two solid weeks with the surgical campaña.

Praise
• For a productive meeting this afternoon.
• For meeting various administrative end-of-month deadlines this week.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda

Saturday Post -- 30/10/10

We were engaged in much merriment yesterday (Friday) as, together with the rest of the Fundación Totaí staff, we marked FT's sixth anniversary. The above picture shows FT staff and various family members at the official climax of the day's festivities. It was a good opportunity to consider how far FT has come and the Lord's provision over the years.

I say official climax as my favourite bit of the afternoon came later on, when about a dozen of the workers got changed and had a game of football out on the field outside our house. Believe it or not, this was my first proper kickabout since we came to Trinidad nine months ago and therefore embraced by yours truly with no little fervour, though admittedly no large flair. Indeed, if you're a secondary English teacher and you're in need of a simple, easy-to-understand definition of irony for your pupils, a simple photograph of me in my Barcelona 'Messi' shirt would be of immense benefit. Forgive me, Lionel, for I have sinned.

Nevertheless, a great time was had by all, not least the opposition goalie. This week also marked the climax of our Spanish classes with Farid, with Amanda concluding her lessons on Wednesday -- though, of course, the learning has only just begun! Cheesy, that, but true. We're glad that, with a freer morning schedule, Amanda will have more opportunities to learn in practical, everyday situations in the workplace. And we're particularly glad for the relationship we've been able to build with our young teacher over these past months, and will certainly be looking to maintain that friendship in the years to come.

On that subject, I was able to take advantage of our newly-turbo-charged internet speed earlier this week to meet, via Skype, my uni flatmate of two years, Dave Vinton, who like ourselves has recently left familiar shores to serve in a new environment -- though in many ways, it couldn't be any more different than Trinidad. Dave, originally from Bath, is working as assistant pastor at Grace Church in Greenwich, Connecticut or, in his own words 'the Tunbridge Wells of the USA'. Just 30 minutes' drive from New York City, Greenwich is America's unofficial hedge fund capital and home to some of the world's big economic players. Like ourselves, adjustment to the new culture has its ups and downs, but he is relishing this new opportunity. For all that our respective 'fields' are in such contrast with one another, I was intrigued to realise, as I chatted to Dave that, in many ways, we face similar hurdles to the gospel, particularly with regard to the whole concept of salvation by grace and not works (admittedly, something that none of us will ever truly grasp this side of Glory). Here the root of that confusion is centuries of Roman Catholic influence; up there, men and women who have gotten where they are in life by being very, very good at what they do.

I really appreciated getting back in touch with an old friend -- you have no idea of the encouragement that that sort of contact can be to us down here. I heartily commend his ministry to you and direct you to his own website, which details his work.

http://davevinton.blogspot.com/

Prayer
• For both of us, that with our formal language training now at an end, we would not slacken off in our Spanish studies.
• For Amanda, who has taken on further administrative tasks this week as part of her work, that she would keep afloat among the paperwork.

Praise
• For big progress this week on the new FT website, which Craig is developing.
• For some great opportunities to spend time with friends this week, be they work colleagues or old pals from home.

¡Qué Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda

Saturday Post -- 14/08/10

Starting the blog this year has really given me a personal insight into the power of the internet. Its benefits have been threefold: it's allowed me to have a few moments of reflection at the week's close; it's given me a reason to keep up writing, which I've always enjoyed (even if the readers haven't); and, most importantly, it's kept friends and family with an interest in our work up-to-date with developments. And we've been immensely encouraged to get your feedback and to know that so many are using the blog to stay informed and to know how they can pray for us.

Having experienced this at first-hand, I've been keen to transfer these insights to FT's website, which was established a few years ago but has suffered from a lack of maintenance over the years -- quite simply, no-one has had the time to carry out the overhaul required. But this week, I've begun to make significant strides and I'm hoping to have the new site up and running within the next few months. Given the myriad of areas which FT's work covers and the overlapping nature of many of the ministries, it's a mammoth task, but one I'm excited to take on.

A few weeks ago we asked for guidance as to the direction of our work with some interesting opportunities potentially surfacing. Since arriving here in January, we’ve been keen to assist in the running of the Jovenes (youth) group, with both of us having a fair bit of experience in this area in the past. However, we were keen not to simply dive in to every area of need when we arrived, so as to accommodate the ever-increasing workload. Over the last few weeks, though, we’ve really felt God pointing us in the direction of the youth work and this was really confirmed to us last Saturday evening, when I spoke at the youth meeting for the first time. Given that around 70% of those who come to the church on a Sunday are aged 20 or under, the importance of the youth ministry cannot be overstated – it could be argued, indeed, that Jovenes is the church’s main service. So please pray ardently for us as we go into this. Pray that we will lead the youth in truth in a culture which abounds with damaging temptations, at school and in the home. And pray for discipline for ourselves in protecting our personal time at the weekend, now that Saturday night is youth night!

Earlier on Saturday, we enjoyed a pleasant afternoon in the company of Sarah Bellhassen, a Canadian medical student who has just left FT after two weeks of voluntary work. We drove out to Loma Suarez, just 15 minutes’ drive from town but a stark contrast to the motorised chaos of central Trinidad – indeed, the only motor we could hear was that of the boat we were ferried up the river in. We sampled some mouth-watering fish before venturing up the water and, all said and done, enjoyed the three hours or so of escape. Some photos are included in the post.

A personal landmark in that I posted 28 years on Tuesday (now two years older than my Dad was when my parents had me – terrifying!) and thank you for the well-wishes expressed via Facebook and otherwise. No parties for me, though – I’d best leave that to the locals, who are doing wonders for our caffeine levels this weekend, the 10th anniversary of our neighbourhood. I woke up at 6am with the music from last night’s party still reverberating through the neighbourhood. And that was only Thursday.

PS – You may be aware that one of my main tasks is to put together the monthly update sent out to interested parties in the wider work of Fundación Totaí. If you’d like to be added to the address list for this update, just drop us a line at our email address (cramandaham@gmail.com) and we’ll be sure to add you to the mailing list.

Prayer
• Our new work with the Jovenes group (see above).
• Wise stewardship as we aim to furnish our flat in the next couple of weeks.

Praise
• Craig’s progress on the website development this week.
• A relaxing time out of town last weekend.

¡Que Dios les bendiga!

Craig & Amanda