Winter Prayer Letter by Byron

P.S.:  Michele here... I didn't get this letter up earlier and hence some of the news that was to happen has already taken place like the missions trip and gift campaign.  

Greetings: December 2019

Well, the hot weather is upon us. Toward the end of the year we get some hot days, usually preceding rain. This week I registered 105 in the shade before 11 AM. At 6:30 I was already sweating. And anyone who cracks "It's a DRY heat" hasn't see my shirt!  There isn't a dry patch on it. I don't usually mind during the day but night is tougher. It's almost enough to make me turn the fan up to high. 

fixing a flat on a recent trip

Almost. It's so hot I actually have to quench the parts in water BEFORE I weld instead of after. In fact, I don't even need a

welder to weld. I just move the parts out of the shade for 10 minutes or until lightly brown, turn, repeat, and it's done. I am getting to be a less bad welder from all the experience I've been getting. In fact I'm up to a class 25 welding category. That means
that if I weld legs on a metal table at least 1 of the 4 stays on (25%). I'd get an automatic upgrade to a class 33 if I started making 3 legged stools. What I really need is a bifocalled welding mask.

I mentioned last letter that we are making weekly trips down dirt roads to interior towns. One of our students is finishing up, but we've picked up another. We have to come back in the dark to fit in 3 studies in a day. The road is rough on our SUV and when it breaks it can be 2 weeks waiting for parts. Several years ago a colleague gave our boys a "go-kart" built off a VW bug. We decided this "sand rail" would be a good alternate vehicle and we've transitioned almost exclusively to it.

In addition to holes and rocks there are mud puddles after rains, and we don't always know when it's rained somewhere along the way. I'm trying to make some fenders, but for now, mud really adds to the 3 hour travel time. As a side benefit, some of our clothes are now a leopard print. The last challenge on the trips is the speed bumps. I remember many of the 723 1/2 speed bumps but still sometimes one will surprise me. They are hard to memorize. Not only do they all look similar, but the goats keep moving!

The sand rail (buggy) does well on the rough roads and if it breaks we still have the other car. I don't have to worry about breaking the glass or denting a door or fender because it doesn't have any of those superfluous devices.  In fact it's just wheels and an engine on a bunch of steel pipe welded together (by at least a grade 75 welder) There's not much protection in a bad accident so we wear helmets. The helmets also protect usfrom the wind and bugs, but also hinder conversation - and snacking - while driving. I used to joke that we never argue in this car, but the other day I hit a rock. Apparently, after 30+ years of marriage you don't need words to get bawled out!

(Warning! Non politically correct speech ahead. People with truth allergies shouldgo to their safe zones). 

When women drivers see danger they step on the brake to slow
down. Men step on the gas. "The closer you are to danger the farther you are from harm." That's why men conquer the world. It's also why women live longer. While driving this sand rail and contemplating life alone in my helmet, I have often analyzed some of the stretches of the road we travel and our survival rate should we encounter a truck coming the other way. I usually accelerate so as to get out of the dangerous section quicker. The other day the topic moved out of the academic. There was an oncoming water tanker truck who wanted his 50% of the narrow road out of the middle. I climbed up on the right bank to pass, but when I braked for a hole the car dove into his rear wheels. Our front tire hit the side of the truck's rear tires and we bounced off. A fraction of a second either way and . . . But except for a ripped tire, car and passengers were unharmed. I now drive a bit more like a woman - but a very manly woman. 

The serious point behind the silly story is to pray for our safety while travelling. Michele wasn't with me on this trip, but I'm so thankful for her as she willingly bounces along beside me to sweat in some little house in the sticks while I tell the same story she's heard a dozen times. It's pretty amazing what God can do with a little old rib.

Sandrail/dirt road buggy

Two of our local colleagues have had problems with detached retinas. As a severely near-sighted person, I've always had a lot of "floaters" or blobs floating around in my eye-sight. But when I suddenly started seeing large globs and annular flashes of light in
my peripheral vision, I knew the symptoms and went to the doctor. Thankfully, my retina is ok for now and this is a side effect of aging that isn't un-common. The flashes are rare now but in one eye I still have a humongous goober swinging back and forth in my line of sight like Tarzan on a vine.

I have had back problems for awhile now and decided to see about that, too. Turns out I've got a couple of bulging disks (wish my disks were the only thing that bulged).  There isn't much to be done, but it's kind of like a new noise in your car. Once you figure out what it is it seems to bother you less. Besides, it'll stop hurting after I'm dead.

A couple more prayer requests. In the middle of December a group is coming to our area for ministry. An early option was to go to the farther town we are in but we are not quite ready to fully utilize a group. We all decided it would be better to go to another town that has a small work in need of a boost. I'm not sure what our level of involvement will be but pray for preparations and effectiveness. Just yesterday we ran into kids that remembered us from the film and wordless bracelets from July so these outreaches can have an impact, especially if you follow up. Transportation is an issue, but it is these more isolated places that need more help.

Missions team with Wordless Ministries

December 14 -21

Last Christmas the church used a designated gift to give a small Christmas present to the poorer kids in the fringe part of town. They are hoping to do the same this year, but emphasize more the gospel with "flash" Bible clubs and some kind of story. With this group coming, planning and preparation will be difficult. We try to limit our involvement in leadership to force them to assume more responsibility and learn how to do things. It is sometimes a tough balancing act. Pray for fruit, growth and wisdom.

Gift Campaign

December 25

With all the heat we've been having I thought about ending the letter with a joke about the desert, but not everyone enjoys dry humor.

 

May you all have a very merry and Christ-filled Christ-mas

The Athas in Brazil