It hardly seems possible we arrived here in Dakar a week ago! We completed our packing in time to get a few hours of sleep before we left Minnesota on the 29th. Friends from our support team helped us get our things to the airport, and saw us off with love and prayers-- even though it was 5 a.m. and very cold!
Everything went smoothly at the airports, in Minneapolis, in New York, and in Dakar. We arrived early Wednesday morning January 30, and were met by two of our friends who helped get us home to our house in Dakar! We are all feeling very happy to be back. We spent the first days greeting friends and unpacking boxes, trying to get our house sorted out and organized once again. Jacob started back in school at Dakar Academy on Monday, and thinks he will be able to catch up quickly in all his classes. We are so thankful for this good school, and teachers who care about each student!
We are mostly unpacked now, and getting started back to our ministry assignments. Dave has been in the office for part of each day this week, though he has been hindered a bit by a severe allergy attack or possibly a cold? (It's hard to know whether it's just adjusting back to all the dust, or something else!) I'm working on sorting through the readings for my "Foundations of Member Care" class, for which I will be reading and working on projects related to our care of missionaries in West Africa during the next three months.
We are enjoying many sights and sounds different than what we've been seeing and hearing the past months! The weather here is quite warm, but not too humid-- feels lovely after the Minnesota cold!! We've seen houses and roads and even cows that are quite different from where we've been...
We hear the sounds of lively city life around us, including a squeaky sound that I found difficult to identify at first. But then I noticed that workers have been working to complete construction on an apartment building across the street from our house, and using a bucket, pulley and ropes to transport sand and cement from the ground to the second and third floors.
It's amazing how much can be accomplished, one bucket at a time.
Here's a link to a small photo set (7 pictures) that give you an idea of this process.
After taking the pictures and thinking about it for awhile, I realize that our lives are something like that. You all may remember the amount of time it took for our support needs to be met. Some of you sent small amounts of money with a note saying, "it isn't much but we want to help..." -- and the thing is, each of those small gifts added together to complete what was needed in order for us to go. All of the individual gifts, in the hands of our Father, helped to complete the support raising process. And it got me thinking more about Jesus feeding five thousand and more with five small loaves of bread and two fish... He is the One who is able to do all that is needed.
As we look at our task in West Africa, it may seem overwhelming. And we may feel that we are not adequate to do all that needs to be done. But if we give what we have, with obedience, we can trust our Father will work with it to accomplish His purposes.
If we only had a couple of buckets, and a pulley, and a rope, we might find it hard to believe that we could think about completing a house... but the diligent work, bucket after bucket, is making surprising progress on that building. May it be so with our lives as well!
Thank you for your prayers on our behalf! We are thankful for each of you, and the part you play in strengthening us and equipping us for our work!
With love and thanks,
Mary
for the Dakar Deckers
happy to be in Dakar again!
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