Hope in Africa

Chelsea's Graduation

2007-06-22T08:22:00.000-04:00

Safe Arrival

2007-06-22T07:43:00.003-04:00

Last week we arrived safely back in the States. It was difficult to say goodbye to everyone in Mozambique. At the same time, it’s great to see familiar faces and enjoy the company of our friends and family. Our first weekend back Jessica and Chelsea went with their old youth group to Ichthus, a christian music festival in Kentucky. They had a great time visiting with old friends and enjoyed the festival.

We are now working on adjusting back to the culture and change in time. Please pray for God's provision and direction for each of us as we transition back across cultures. Thank you for your support and prayers through our journey in Mozambique. We'll be writing more in the next few weeks, but wanted to share this short update to let you know we arrived back in the States safely.

Happenings

2007-04-18T13:10:00.000-04:00

The end of the school year is just around the corner. This is a very exciting time for our family because Chelsea is graduating from high school in June. It’s also a bit hectic as we begin to prepare to return to the States in June. June is the end of our family’s two-year term in Mozambique.

During Easter break, our family spent a few days serving at an orphanage. During our visit, we helped sort several boxes of infant and toddler clothing. After we finished sorting the clothes we had the pleasure of helping the kids pick clothes for the cooler weather. This was so much fun because the kids were very excited about getting their new clothes. After helping them with their clothes we played and played, and played some more. Kris taught them “Ring Around the Rosie” and they wanted to play that all day. On one of our days working with the orphanage we visited the main landfill for Maputo with a group. We spent our time there talking with folks who were sifting through the trash and visiting with people who live around the landfill. We shared bread with them and prayed for them. This is something that the orphanage does weekly.

It’s hard to believe that in a month Chelsea will complete high school. As parents, we are experiencing a variety of emotions. We are very excited for her and are anxious to see what is in store for this next stage of her life. However, we still sometimes think of her as our baby. Chelsea is excited about college and has been working very hard in high school. She is thinking of studying history and journalism. Over the past few months she has spent a great deal of time thinking about which college she would like to attend. Her plan is to complete her first year or two at a community college to help ease her transition back to the States, then to transfer to Bethel College. The picture included with this post is one of Chelsea's Senior pictures.

Jessica has been busy with school and friends. She is taking Geometry this year and finds it challenging. She is doing well and is looking forward to returning to the States to spend time with her family and friends.

Kris has been busy teaching first and second grade at CAM. She is really enjoying working with all the kids. It’s been a great school year and she’s grateful for the opportunity to be a part of their lives. It’s fun and exciting to watch how much kids at this age grow and develop over the course of a school year.

This semester Glenn is continuing to teach Bible and Math with the seventh and eighth grades at CAM. In addition he is working on the Christian Micro-Enterprise Development program, is a member of the Field Leadership Team, and is helping the Maputo City Church with English classes.

We have mixed emotions as we draw close to the end of our term in Mozambique. We are looking forward to returning to the United States and spending time with friends and family. At the same time, we are sad as we think about leaving our mission family and friends here. We have enjoyed serving in Mozambique and are thankful for this opportunity.

More on Explosive Afternoon

2007-03-23T00:04:00.000-04:00

We wanted to share a few links to stories that provide information that we didn't have in our first update. As we mentioned earlier, everyone on our team is doing fine. The U.S. Embassy sent an email today stating that the airport remains closed and that there is now a search for unexploded ordinance in the city.

Explosive Afternoon

2007-03-22T12:57:00.000-04:00

Today we had a new experience as a result of the heat of the Mozambique summer. In the late afternoon we started hearing rumbling that sounded like thunder, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky. After a few minutes we realized that the sounds were more like explosions than thunder. It wasn't long after that realization that the "booms" were loud enough to begin breaking windows in our neighborhood, including one in our house.

We started calling and searching for information trying to understand what was happening. It seems that all the excitement was caused by obsolete weapons waiting for destruction at a site near the airport in Maputo. The explosions were apparently heat-induced weapons explosions. We are all fine and the only damage we experienced was to the one window. It's still early, so we don't have a lot of information and are not sure if anyone has been hurt near the weapons site. All this happened shortly after we greeted a new team member who arrived at the airport today. I can only imagine what she is thinking with this being her first day in Maputo.

This is the second time it has happened in the last two months. The first time was in late January and only lasted for about 45 minutes. Today's explosions lasted for a few hours with mushroom clouds visible at times from some of the explosions. We were watching Mozambique's national television channel, which was providing coverage of the explosions and fire from the site. There were images of people running for cover and unexploded shells laying on the ground blown around the area surrounding the weapons site.

Semente para Comunidade

2007-03-15T09:30:00.000-04:00

In our last update I shared that the first phase of our Christian micro-enterprise development (CMED) program was beginning and that we were planning to hire two Mozambican coordinators for the program. I'm excited to share that Samuel and Mario were selected as the coordinators and began working on the program in early February. They are leading the program, with Steve Kuhn and I working with them as advisers. Mario is on the far right in this picture and Samuel is standing next to him. This photo is from their trip to Nampula, which I'll share more about later in this update.

We've been working with Samuel and Mario to develop an implementation plan for a village savings and loan (VSL) program that can serve as the foundation of a financial discipleship program. Other programs can be developed in future years targeted at specific needs in each community, using the VSL training and groups as a foundation. We pray the village savings and loan program will help people learn how to be better stewards of the resources that God has entrusted to them. The goals of village savings and loans are to increase household security through savings, provide opportunity for loans, and to create a social fund to aid members experiencing emergencies. It's targeted at rural communities and is accomplished through the personal savings of each of the group members. There is demand for this type of a program because people in rural communities typically don't have access to any type of banking, including micro-credit. The program is community-based, not just church-based.

Samuel and Mario are working with the OMS Every Community for Christ (ECC) program and the National Church to determine specific communities and how many VSL groups might be possible this year. Samuel and Mario have set a goal of starting the first VSL in April. One of the many things they have been working on over the past month is naming the program in Mozambique, so it has an identity that is relevant to this culture. CMED is the name that OMS is using to refer to this type of program. This week Samuel and Mario suggested Semente para Comunidade, which is Seed for Community in English.

In February Steve, Mario, and Samuel traveled to Nampula in northern Mozambique. The purpose of the trip was to help Samuel and Mario develop a vision for what might be possible with VSL groups by seeing them and experiencing them in person. They spent four days visiting VSL groups and meeting with a Mozambican organization implementing VSL in the northern part of the country. After they returned we met with the National Church leadership to update them on the trip to Nampula and to share the positive impacts of the VSL program witnessed by Samuel, Steve and Mario during their visit. If you would like to learn more about VSLs or the trip to Nampula click on these links; Grassroots Banking, The Widow's Mite, and Break the Rules! to read some great updates written by Steve.

Excited about the New Year

2007-01-18T12:21:00.000-05:00

Today was the first day of school for the second semester at CAM. It was exciting to see everyone back at school and to start the second semester. It was also a special day for our family because it’s the beginning of Chelsea’s final semester of High School. This semester Kris is teaching a combined class of first and second graders again. I’m teaching a Bible class and three math classes.

Steve Kuhn and I, with help from many others, are beginning the first phase of a pilot project this month for the Christian micro-enterprise development program (CMED). The purpose of the program is to support the work of our Every Community for Christ evangelism and church planting efforts. The key building block in the Mozambique CMED program is a village savings and loan model developed by CARE International. Over the next couple of months we hope to hire Mozambican coordinators for the program and work with another organization to train the coordinators. We pray that we are able to share exciting updates over the next months of the training, village savings and loans being started, and the positive impacts on people’s lives.

The City Church English program completed a successful session of classes at the end of December, prior to the holidays. The leadership of the English program and all teaching for that session was provided by Mozambican volunteers, most of whom are members of the City Church. It's exciting for us to watch them leading the program and the life changing relationships that are being developed through the program.

We hope that everyone had a safe and fun holiday season. Over the holidays we had the opportunity to experience more of southern Africa. We traveled together with the Glancy Family to the west coast of Africa and saw the Atlantic Ocean from the Skeleton Coast of Namibia. Namibia is a beautiful country and we spent a couple weeks camping in different parts of the country to experience several of the different landscapes that it has to offer. We are very thankful for this opportunity to rest and rejuvenate for the new year. It was an adventure that we will all remember for a long time.

Mozambique is on the east coast of Africa on the Indian Ocean, so our journey took us from coast-to-coast in southern Africa. The day after Christmas all eight of us (4 Berrymans and 4 Glancys) climbed into the Glancy’s Toyota Land Cruiser and set off on a 6,000-kilometer journey. Much of our drive was through the Kalahari Desert. Our route through the Kalahari included South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia. Each country had many interesting features and includes it’s own set of stories on our journey. There were a few exciting interactions with wildlife, including Kris being stung by a small scorpion and our group coming across a Black Mamba on a desert trail.

We posted a few pictures from our trip to share some of the sights we saw. In Botswana and Namibia we saw lots of donkeys used for transportation, food, and agriculture. The most interesting was this gentleman and his colorful cart.

Merry Christmas

2006-12-24T00:37:00.000-05:00

Wednesday was the last day of school for the semester at CAM and everything is beginning to slow down a little around Maputo as everyone prepares to celebrate the holidays. Christmas in Africa is a different experience in many ways than what have grown up with in the U.S. and similar in a few. We are in the heat of summer now, so the weather makes if difficult to think about it being Christmas. In addition, there aren't many visuals to serve as constant reminders. One thing that is similar though, is it's a time for Mozambicans to get together with family and friends to enjoy each others company. We wish we were closer and able to share the holidays in person with all of our friends and family. We miss you all very much and think of you often. The absence of all the physical reminders does help us to focus on and reflect about the ultimate gift given by Jesus, His life. We pray that you have a merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Merry Christmas,

Glenn, Kris, Chelsea, and Jessica

Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! - Luke 2:9-11

Kindred Spirits

2006-12-10T07:24:00.000-05:00

Last June God answered a prayer request of mine regarding finding a women’s Bible study in English. Living and serving abroad is very challenging at times and I realized that I missed close fellowship with other women. God responded by bringing together several missionary women who have different backgrounds but many similarities. Last June about 5 of us began an 8-week Beth Moore study. We meet weekly in our homes for about 2 hours and I realize how important this time together has become for all of us. We spend much time discussing our weeks and things that are on our hearts. As you can guess, the 8-week study lasted all summer and went into the fall! It was wonderful! We continue to meet and add women to the group. We spend our time singing, praying for one another, and studying God’s word. I believe that without this group of women my life in Mozambique would be more difficult. I thank God for putting all of us together so that we may share, encourage each other, and praise God.

“A smile of encouragement at the right moment may act like sunlight on a closed-up flower; it may be the turning point for a struggling life.” -- unknown

Maputo

2006-11-19T14:25:00.000-05:00

If you are interested in learning more about Maputo you can take an aerial tour using Google Maps. Click here to see Maputo on Google Maps.

Happy Thanksgiving

2006-11-19T08:59:00.000-05:00

This weekend we celebrated Thanksgiving with our OMS team. We all gathered at the Glancys house. As Chelsea shared in her update a couple weeks ago, we feasted on a 32 pound turkey. We had 16 people and barely made a dent in the turkey, though we did our best. We'll have stories to tell about the turkey, and the challenge of finding an oven big enough to fit it for many years to come. It was a fun day and a great time together with the team. We wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and pray that you have a fun, relaxing, and safe holiday. We have many things to be thankful for and wanted to share some updates.

Family
Kris' parents visited us in October and stayed for about two weeks. It was great having the opportunity to spend time with them and seeing more of both Mozambique and South Africa with them. Our only disappointment was that our time with them went too fast.

English Program
The program is going well and we are excited to share it is now being run completely by Mozambicans. Timoteo is leading the program with the help of other church members and volunteers outside the church. He is completing his studies at the Language Institute in Maputo to be an English teacher and should be graduating in December. It's exciting to watch him develop as a leader in the church and in the English program. Now that the program is completely being run by Mozambicans Kris and I are spending more time teaching at the Christian Academy in Mozambique and helping to coordinate Christian Micro-Enterprise Development.

Christian Academy in Mozambique
Kris continues to enjoy teaching first and second grade. I'm enjoying teaching Pre-Algebra, Algebra, Business Math, Economics, and 11th and 12th grade Computers. One of the neat things about the school is all the different countries and cultures represented across the student body. Even though all the instruction is done in English, it's been a learning experience about how different English can be culture to culture. Chelsea and Jessica like the school and are learning a lot about many different cultures in Africa and around the world.

Christian Micro-Enterprise Development
Over the past several months I've been working together with Steve Kuhn, our Field Leadership Team, and leaders in the National Church to develop a strategy to identify and remove barriers to economic development for church and community members. Our strategy has three components; business training and mentoring, access to business opportunities and resources, and village-based savings and credit services. Click here to learn more about village-based savings and credit services and why they are important for rural communities, where most of our church planting work takes place.

A Good Friend
We've shared in previous updates about a good friend of our family, Jossias. Jossias has helped us with learning the culture in Mozambique and has been active in the English Program. We want to ask for your prayers for him. Over the last couple of months he's been ill, having problems with severe headaches and dizziness. He's not sure what the problem is, but his doctor is advising him that he needs to be in the hospital. He's preparing this week to travel back to his home province of Manica to be with his family and to go into the hospital.

News

2006-11-03T08:12:00.000-05:00

Hello All! I have received some wonderful news that will help me accomplish God's will and plan for my life. Bethel college and Purdue have both accepted me. Now all I must do is pray and decide which college will be best for me.

Jessica and two of her friends are going to be in a triathlon tomorrow. The girls are really into sports and have enjoyed them tremendously.

Mom and Dad have been busy with school. Dad is teaching my Econ, Math, and Computer class. Mom has really been enjoying teaching her class and getting involved with some of the women around Maputo for a bible study. I really think this is helping all the women with the culture and just relax with women who can relate to each other.

Good-byes
Good-byes can be sweet but sad too. Jess and I have a friend who is leaving soon and we will have to say our good-byes. She has really been a blessing in our lives and I will truly miss her.

I have had time to read more....I have been reading like crazy and enjoy it tremendously!

Holidays are coming! The Glancys just got back from South Africa with a 30 pound turkey. It is literally 30 pounds!!! I think we will be eating that for a long while after Thanksgiving! The turkey is like the Toby (our large dog) of turkeys!-that's what my dad said. We are going to Namibia for Christmas break and can't wait to explore another part of Africa!

I just wanted to update you guys and hope all is well!!
Blessings and Smiles upon you all!!
Chelsea

Mozambique in Outreach

2006-10-29T01:51:00.000-05:00

The latest issue of the OMS Outreach magazine features Mozambique. One of the articles was a summary of some of our family blog updates. Click here to download the article. Outreach is the magazine of OMS International, the organization we are serving with in Mozambique.

On the Radio

2006-09-22T16:05:00.000-04:00

Chelsea's reflections on her trip to India were shared through Y-Press on WFYI Radio in Indianapolis this week. If you are interested, you can listen to the story on WFYI's web site. Click here to go to the Y-Press stories on WFYI's web site. The story on Chelsea's trip is titled "Faith and Belief in India".

Back to First Grade

2006-09-18T13:06:00.000-04:00

Well a new school year has begun and I’m finally getting settled into my new classroom. This year I am teaching first and second grade. I found this to be overwhelming at first, but now that I have a few weeks under my belt, I am enjoying working with my kids. I currently have 6 first graders, 6 second graders, and 3 fish (Miss Lips, Prince, and Spot). I find it rewarding to be able to teach the first graders reading and help the second graders grow in their reading. My students, just like last year, come from a variety of countries, including Nigeria, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, United States, India, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. One of the most challenging tasks that I have is not teaching, but telling all the students apart. I have 2 sets of twins! One set in first grade and one set in second. It can get confusing but they are very forgiving when I mix them up. This picture was taken during our first potluck at the Christian Academy in Mozambique. My class performed 2 poems that they memorized and enjoyed performing. I was so proud of them. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers this year as we progress through the school year.

Reflections on My Trip to India

2006-09-12T13:07:00.000-04:00

The idea for the trip began when was sitting at a table with some friends and I over heard one of our team members talking about India. I was very intrigued to learn about all the adventures and experiences she had as a child growing up in India. We talked more about India and I found out that she and her husband (Susan and Larry Weil) were going to India this summer. Jokingly I said, “Sign me up!”. Before I knew it I was going to India to be a missionary and help out in any way possible with a side of adventure. I was on my way to an unfamiliar land with a couple I would be getting to know very well.

I was not nervous at first when planning for the trip, but when it was actually time to leave and I was at the bus stop saying good-bye to my family and to my good friend who would be moving while I was gone I started to feel at bit fidgety about the whole trip. I had tears running down my cheeks as the bus pulled away. I was one step further from home and one step closer to my adventure. Susan calmed my nerves, but I don’t think she knew about that.

We arrived in Mumbai, India around midnight and what a culture shock. The weather just smacked us in the face as we went outside to our next connecting flight. It was so hot and humid and it was midnight!! The air smelled of spices and of body odor. The body odor wasn’t a surprise for me since I've gotten use to that living in Mozambique. We caught our plane to Delhi, India and that was where we were to stay for a day. As soon as we made it to the family we were staying with we just passed out as we were exhausted from traveling.

Delhi was a little cooler but not by much. We took the trains around to different cities such as Mussoorie, Agra, and Allahabad. We took a day train to Agra and I got to see the Taj Mahal. It was unreal. To think I’ve seen one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It’s just incredible.

Next we took the train to Allahabad where we stayed for three weeks. The people you meet on trains are very interesting. I stayed up till 1 in the morning talking to these three Indian girls and asking questions back and forth. I asked them why they believed what they believe and they asked me the same. They thought my music was very different. They weren’t accustomed to hard rock music.

We made it to Allahabad and went right to the Allahabad Bible Seminary where I worked in the library and helped Susan with the inventory. There were days where we just wanted to quit because of the heat. We had but only fans and open windows to cool us. The electricity is not reliable and so most of the day there is none. Susan and I enjoyed tea time everyday. That was the big event of the day. I can honestly tell you I know the library like the back of my hand. It was hard some days because the heat would just take everything out of you.

The Indian people are very hospitable. It’s amazing how much they want to know and the things they tell you. I would go back to India in a heart beat. It’s a beautiful and amazing country to get to know. I only got to know a little part of India and I can’t wait to go back and learn more about this country. It needs help in so many ways, yet it also changed our lives, hearts, and the way we think.

I learned so much about India but I learned more about myself on the trip. I learned that I take things for granted and waste is a big thing. It’s a powerful thing to be a witness. I need to be strong for my beliefs and battle things out and not give up but stick it through. I need to have a willingness to be able to get out of my comfort bubble and speak up. We all need to be open to other cultures and be willing to listen to those in need. You never know someone could come into your heart and could change your world. I encourage all of you to take a trip to some foreign country and help change someone’s life. Who knows! Maybe you’ll be the one changed when you come back.

Micro-Enterprise Development Training

2006-08-20T13:07:00.000-04:00

This week the first micro-enterprise development training class was completed through the church in Khongolote. Training was led by 4 individuals who are leaders in the national church and were trained to be trainers for this material in April. Students in this class are members of the church who currently run small businesses or expressed an interest in business training. 18 students completed two-weeks of training. The purpose of the training was to help them develop a business plan to improve their existing business or start a new one. We see this training as part of an integrated strategy to empower, equip and strengthen churches to serve their communities by meeting the social, physical, spiritual needs. By adding these church-centered initiatives to what our churches are doing today, we believe they will have a more holistic impact on their communities.

At the end of July, Steve and Laura Kuhn from Canada joined our OMS Team in Mozambique. Laura is teaching at the Christian Academy in Mozambique. One of the areas where Steve will be working is with with me and others on our team on micro-enterprise development. Steve put together a great update sharing some of the wonderful blessings that are happening from this type of training. I wanted to share this story from the update.

Participants' eyes were opened to simple business principles. One lady shared during the post-training evaluation that the most important realization that she made during the two weeks of training was the need to separate personal and business finances. This lady shared how this simple realization will improve her business: she hadn't realized before the training how much profit she was earning from the sale of charcoal. She competed by offering the same product with the same terms of sale as her competitors. Now she realizes that she can sell her charcoal for a lower price, but insist that her clients pay right away rather than extending them credit. Under her old business model, her business was constrained because of a cash flow problem resulting from her receivables -- that is, because people paid for her product up to a month after having purchased it, she would not have sufficient cash to purchase her next lot of inventory for the rest of that month. Now she knows that by insisting her clients pay right away (and offering a lower price for doing so), she'll improve her cash flow and be able to turn her inventory three times faster.

Building Relationships

2006-08-05T13:08:00.000-04:00

One of the incredible things that we've experienced over the last few months is working with the Mozambicans who have volunteered to help with the English program as teachers. It's encouraging for us and for the leaders in the church to see their own brothers and sisters giving of themselves to help the program and their own brothers and sisters.

Having these individuals involved in the program is a win/win for everyone. Most of these folks are going to school, training to be teachers in Mozambican schools. Their involvement helps them gain experience, additional training, and gives them an opportunity to use their skills and gifts to help others. It's great for the students because they get to hear other accents and are encouraged by the involvement of these teachers. The involvement of the teachers helps the church's English program become sustainable for the long-term, which is encouraging for the leaders in the church.

Working with the leaders in the church we invited all the teachers to a fun night at the church just for them. This was an opportunity thank them in a small way. It was also a great opportunity for the teachers and church leaders to get to know each other better. During the week everyone is busy teaching and keeping up with all their other responsibilities. Last night we got together for the social and had a great time sharing and getting to know each other better. We spent time visiting with each other, sharing lessons learned, and determining what we could do to improve the program. After we finished the discussion we watched a movie together, the Count of Monte Cristo. Everyone seemed to have a great time, talked about doing this on a regular basis, and getting the group together as a small group bible study.

Chamanculo

2006-07-16T13:08:00.000-04:00

Kris, Chelsea and Jessica along with the church members in Chamanculo and our team members, Bruce and Mabel Callender. Chamanculo is an area of Maputo close to our house. One of the English students, Jorge Miambo, started this church at his family's house about 5 years ago with the help of an OMS Missionary.

Chelsea's Back from India

2006-07-13T13:08:00.000-04:00

We wanted to share that Chelsea made it home safely from India today. She had a great time, enjoyed the Indian people and culture, and got a lot of work done too. We'll share much more from her trip over the next few weeks as she gets time to collect her thoughts. While in India she had henna art done on her hands, which you can see in this picture. It's a dye that will wear-off over the next few weeks. We all missed her so much and are happy to have her home.

Loving Children

2006-05-18T13:09:00.001-04:00

I recently visited a nearby orphanage located on the outskirts of Maputo. One of my students and her family minister there so I was able to spend the night. After taking a tour of the orphanage and meeting a lot of children, I spent much time at the “baby house”. The baby house is the building where the toddlers and babies live. With mixed feelings, I sat on the concrete floor and played, held, giggled, and loved the orphans there.

I say mixed feelings because it was sad to see so many young children who did not live with their relatives but joyful because these innocent children bring warmth to my heart. I find that when I am feeling down, playing with children instantly cheers me up.

In these pictures, I am holding Rachel. As soon as she saw me arrive, she ran to me and was immediately in my arms. She never left my side. Unconditional love. In the other photo I am playing with Paulito (of course while holding Rachel). Paulito would touch my hair and say “bonita” (pretty) and I would mess my hair up and say “feo” (ugly). He would fix my hair, give me a big kiss, and the game would continue.

After my “playtime”, I helped my friends hang curtains in one of the many boys’ dorms. It was a great experience to be able to do something so small, yet be so appreciated. One of the lessons I learned is that we need to be happy with what we have and be grateful for those extra things that God blesses with. I never would have thought that curtains would have been such a blessing. I will never forget the time I was able to spend at the orphanage and look forward to when I can go back.

Sabie

2006-05-18T13:09:00.000-04:00

Over spring holiday, our family visited Sabie which is a small town in South Africa. We found rest and relaxation at this mountainous part of South Africa. During our stay we visited several lookout points, small towns and shops. There was a silk factory where I was able to see how silk yarn is made. Of course, I was the only one excited! We went horseback riding and enjoyed the scenery and our time together.