Property hunt...

As many of you know, we are hoping to put up a processing plant for the pig project. Of course it will need land to be built on. This involves a process of finding land we like, getting it approved for our use by the Ministry of Environment, then finally, raising the funds to purchase it! So... we have been looking as we find time.

Yesterday, Magdalena's son was sick so she needed some time off. I decided to take advantage of the moment by going out to look at a piece of land I had heard about. Clifford and I tromped to the back border of the property, and it was perfect weather... not to hot and not raining. The place looks good, and has a reasonable price. One more piece to check out, then we will have three places to get the environment check on before we decide and start trying to raise the funds for it. Please pray for the Lord's direction!

On the property.

And some pretty ferns along the way :)

Everyday Life :)

A couple of years ago a girl came up to me after I finished speaking at a church. With a look of great wonder, she cautiously touched my arm. Delight spread over her face afterwards as she exclaimed, "Wow, I got to touch a real live missionary!" I smiled to myself, and think of that at the oddest moments... usually when I am doing the most mundane every day tasks... the kind of tasks that people such as that girl don't envision missionaries doing. After all, don't missionaries just go around preaching the gospel, getting people saved, and building churches? :) So... to prove that real live missionaries (aren't all Christians supposed to be missionaries?) do everyday mundane tasks... let me tell you about my day Saturday.

We had several days of chilly, drizzly weather, and Saturday morning dawned cool and crisp. However, the morning bore the promise of sun... so it was a good day for laundry: things would actually dry! So, I set the machine up on the porch and started off, using the rinse water from one load to wash the next load, then keeping the water to be used the third time to scrub down the floors of the house. I washed clothes, towels, sheets, blankets, and rugs... it was time for a good cleaning! In between loads of laundry I took the recycled water, poured it onto the cement floors, and got on my hands and knees with a brush to scrub out the dirt. Sandra helped me finish up, and by 11:30 laundry was finished, floor was clean, beds re-made, and the last of the laundry was basking in the warm sun. I even used some of the recycled water to wash the shower curtain and scrub down the bathroom. Wow, did the place smell and look sparkling clean! And did I ever feel exhausted!

The early afternoon was spent catching up on some paperwork, then we headed outside at four to get some yard work done. The lawnmower buzzed, the rake moved, and the machete whacked, until 6:00 when it was time for a well-deserved dinner. It was a good day of work!

So... besides everyday cleaning, cooking, and laundry, real live missionaries take some time for days of deeper cleaning as well. After all, we are just real people like everyone else!

I know you already knew that, but it is good to throw a reality post in every once in a while, lest anyone think we teach and write Bible studies every waking hour. :)