courtney michael linda 1986 kenya

8/12/2019 Courtney Michael Linda 1986 Kenya

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o Reach a Hidden PeopleCourtneyChris t ianMission

FORWARDING AGENTS: Rich Mary Ann jenks / P.O. Box 2053 / Salem, OR 97308 / (503) 6 5 3 - 0 6 9 IFI L ADDRESS: Mike Linda Courtney / P.O. Box 900 / Kitale, KenyaV o l . 7 No 1

We c o n d u c t e d a F o o d - F o r - W o r k progratn e a r l y i n t h e y e a r u s u a l l ya t t e n d e d by 5 0 0 - 7 0 0 p e o p l e p e r day

We c e l e b r a t e d T r e v o r s 1 0 t hb i r t h d a y on March 8 1985

J a n u a r y 1986

L i n d a p a r t i c i p a t e d i n s e v e r a lmobi le c l i n i c s t h r o u g h o u t t h ey e a r a n d ssisted w i t h a n e xt e n s i v e i m m u n i z a t i o n p r o g r a m .


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I n M a v M i k e w e n t withJustin Svlvestre a n d M i k eS c h r a g e t o s u r v e v newa r e a i n U g a n d a .

Mike did much t e a c h i n g andl e a d e r s h i p t ra in i ^g duringthe vear

e w e r e v e r y p l e a s e d t oh a v e s o o n - to be aD o c t o r Eileen O S h a u n -n e s s y from M i n n e a p o l i sc o m e t o w o r k w i t h u sd u r i n g t h e summer


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Bapt i sms a t K ase i in J u l y .

We c el eb ra te d a ur a s8 th b i r t h d a v on S e p t .2 1 9 8 5 .

n ugust ui went byh e l i c o p t e r to T a r a k e tMounta in fo r m obi l eclinic and p r e a c h i n g .

n October Mike beganp r e a c h i n g a t newi o c a t i o n N g o ro n .


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The h i g h l i s h t o f Novemberuias th e t h r e e - n i g h t p r each i ngtrip to nea rby moun t a i n swi t h ou r c o -wo r k e r s J u s t i nSy lves t r e and Mike Schrage .The me n camped on a d i f f e r e n tmou nta in e ach n i gh t .

COURTNEY CHRISTIAN MISSIONP . 0 . Box 2053Sa l em OR 97308

Research HorizonsP 0 . Box 2^27Knoxv i l l e Tenn 37901

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

M ike was p r i v i l e g e d tobap t i z e 14 men a tNgoron in Decembe rjust a few day s be f o r ethe celebration of ou rLord s birth

NO N PROF IT O R GU.S . POSTAGE PAID

Permit 5 0 5Sa l em Oregon


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'CONFESSIONS of a SANCTIFIED WORKAHOLIC- by Linda Courtney, R.N.

Missionaries, by definition, are busypeople. It is hard for me to recognize thatres t has value in and of itself. It is no t th esame thing as laziness. Facing so muchphysical and spiritual need on the missionf ield, I haveaverydifficulttimeseeing nonproductive activity as valuable. To read afun story to my children, or sew for an hourseems selfish. To simply si t and enjoy th es u n and God 's beautiful ear th fo r 15 minutesis positively sinful

I th ink ~ o f t e n a bo ut t he i n v e s t m e n t speople have made in my life; the professorsand instructors at Bible College and NursingSchool, my parents, Sunday Schoolteachers, ou r supporting churches. Because of th is investment , I feel compelled toproduce, produce, produce Every missionary sermon I eve r hea rd in my life comesback to haunt me as I remind myself that th etime is short, th e harvest is plentiful, th elaborers ar e few (I am one of th e chosenones ), the fields are white, work, work,work And I feel compelled and driven. AndIwonder why I become depressed, why Iamso tired, why I sometimes hate this work.And I begin to see God not as a loving father,b u t a s a w r a t h f u l t a s k m a s t e r .I can't go on like this. Eventuallysomething snaps and God in His lovereaches down into th e very deepestcaverns of my being, plucks ou t thatpiercing shard of my bloated ego andunrealistic aspirations and with a firm,disciplinary hand, crushes it into a thousandpieces. And I'm left with nothing but thereality of His love and the affirmation that Hemade me fo r His glory, no t for the th ings Ica n accompl ish and th e sacrifices I ca nmak e. And wha t makes mejust si t andweepis th e realization that I have been so busydoing things ~ good things ~ that I haven'tt aken the t ime to be still, to g lo ri fy Him. Inmy rush to save Africa, I've lost sight of myprimary purpose on earth.Many of us on the mission field have ou rpriorities so confused. We have used theGreat Commission as a l ic ense to b e c o m e sanctified workaholics. Where do we getth e idea that we are s o absolutelyindispensable, so valuable to the Lord thatwe mus t s ac ri fi ce our health, f amily wel l-being, and spiritual growth to the demigodof overwork? The s a m e J e s u s who said, Goye, also said, I will giveyou rest. and Youwill find rest for your souls. Many of us ar eso impressed by ou r own importance andth e urgency of ou r call that we are no twilling to sacrifice th e time necessary toa llow God to give res t to our souls.

Res t must be important, for th e Gospel ofMark a lo ne r ec or ds s o m e 35 t im e s w he nJesus r es ted, r et ir ed t o a lonely place, ordeparted Into a mountain to pray. He hadsuch a short t ime her e on earth. Why didn'tHe spend every single waking moment54 healing, teaching, andmeeting theneedsoft h e m a s se s ?

2 BURNOUT AND DEPRESSION

Burnout is defined a s that condit ion ofsevere depression in which one's physicaland mental resources become depleted. Inhis book, Now I Kriow Why I'm Depressed,Norm Wright says that there ar e times whichmay predispose to th e development ofdepression and burnout. Itwill usually comein th e midst of or following a lo ng p er io d o funbroken labor. We develop unrealisticexpectations fo r ourselves, our families, andour co-workers. When these expecta t ionsare no t met, it creates more anxiety. Webegin to look upon r es t a s frivolous non-activity.

How many of us have known missionarieswho ar e proud of th e fact tha t they just don' thave l ime t o t ak e a day off? They ar e to obusy, to o dedicated, too indispensable. Th ework would fall to pieces without them. Th eLord just couldn' t carry on withouttheirableassistance And th e agonizingly sa d part ofit all is that they can't see that t he y havebecome dogmatic, short-tempered with th enationals, unyielding, obsessive, and havelost their objectivity and sense of humor. Or,o fte n o ve rw or ked m is sio na rie s b e c o m ecynical and unresponsive to t he needs andfeelings of th e people with whom they work.They have lost their dedication and compassion. They just don't care anymore. Wewould dearly love to ship them off somewhere for a couple weeks of vacation ~ fo rtheir own good and t he good of their work.WHY R E S T ?

For many of us, ou r work has becomebondage. Sit quiet ly and evaluate thenormal level of your intensity. Are you'always on the go? ' Does it give you strokes(boost your ego) to have people say you're aworkaholic? Is it hard for you to be quiet, tobe at ease, to be alone and still? (8, p. 178)*

Most of us pass very l ight ly over DaySeven of creation. It is no big deal. God justrested. But why did God rest? Washetotallyexhausted from His previous si x days ofback-breaking labor? I doubt it God maderest. He felt that it was important enough tospend one ent ire day of the creat ion weekjust resting.We, as missionaries, must take time tostep back from our work and co-workers, totake an objective look at what we are doingand how we ar e accomplishing our task.We need to take th e t im e to be creative.Many missionaries do only one thing missions. Everyth ing t hey read has to dowith missions or church growth. Theywouldn 't d re am of reading purely forpleasure. They have no hobbies, don'tengage in any recreat iona l pursuit s, andcan' t converse intelligently on any subjec to t he r t h an missions.

We nee d to take th e t ime to affirm andsupport ou r co-workers who may bedesperately in need of a pa t on th e back.Often we ge t so wrapped up in our own workth at w e don't notice th e struggles or hurtsanother person is experiencing. If we ar e sobusy that we don't have t ime to minister to

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Linda d istri buti ng new suits to Kasels t u d e n t s .

th e needs of our co-workers, then we ar e to obusy.

We n ee d t o t ak e t ime ~ t o m ak e t ime tocommunicate with our families, withourselves, an d with God. I appreciated somuch what o n e of ou r b o ar d member s o n c etold me. He is a preacher, and periodicallyhe leaves for an ent ire day to be alone withGod, just to lis ten to what the Lord has to sayto him, away from the clamor of church andfamily.HOW T O R EST

In our work in Kara Pokot, Kenya, we occasionally use a helicopter because of theinaccessibility of some of th e areas. Forevery hour of flying time, the pilot tells me,the helicopter requires about one hour of down time for repair and maintenance. Ithas been my observation that most humanbeings (especial ly missionaries) alsorequire down time for rest and renewal,away from the daily stresses of our lives.In our family I have been granted aprivilege which I treasure. It is the ability tocall a halt whenever I se e th e need. If I feelthat one of us is getting buried beneathunusual stresses, or is losing objectivity an dhaving difficulty dea ling with the dailyhassles, I can request a period of downtime. It may bejust a morning on Mt.Elgon,a few days change of scene in the smalltown of Kitale, a journey to the real worldin Nairobi, or a couple days in a game park.We make a point of taking a break even ifit isn't our regular vacation time for fourreasons; (1) To re-es tabl ish ou r relationship with God, which has p robably b eenneglected during th e stressful time. (2) Tore-establish our relationship as husbandand wife. (3) To spend intense, quality timewith our children, who have p roba bl y a ls obeen neglected an d shoved aside for moreimportant matters. (4) To re-evaluate andanalyze ou r objectives an d where we aregoing in ou r ministry and family life.

Time fo r rest an d restoration doesn't just happen, unless you count t he t ime whenth e river was flooded and we couldn't gohome fo r a month, or the week we spentwaiting for car parts. We must se e time forrest as a priority. It usually must bes ch ed ul ed a h ea d of tim e a n d th e n n o tusurped fo r more urgent matters.

Rest is a physical and psychologicalnecessity. Rest is a spiritual necessi ty. Godmade rest. And He gav e r es t to missionaries so that they might be better fitted tofulfill t h e G r ea t C o m m i s s i o n .S e e Bibliography on page 20

Bibliographycontinued from page 2

1. Fi t fo r th e King. Virtue. Jan./Feb. 1981.2. Hammersmark , Judy . I Was a Once-A-Month Wi tch . Virtue. Sept./Oct. 1980. Vol.3. No . 1.3. Hansel, Tim. When I Relax I Feel Guilty.Cook, 1979.4. MacDona ld , Ruby. 12 Ways EveryWoman C a n Be Beaut if u l. Virtue. M a r c h /April 1984. Vol. 6, No. 4.5. Michaels . Jane . Here's t o You r HealthRedbook. April 1980. Vol. 154, No. 6.8. Omar t ian , S tormie . Greater Heal th God 'sWay. Sparrow, 1984.

7. Sailhammer, Paul. Man Alive FamilyLife today. March 1963.8. Swindell. Charles R. Strengthening YourGrip. Word, 1982.9. VanderVeer, J .B., M.D. Handling StressBiblically. Virtue. Jan./Feb. 1981. Vol.3,N o. 3.10. Walking; The Exercise fo r th e Non-Athletic. Virtue. March/April 1981. Vol.3,N o . 4.11. Wright, H. Norman. Now I Know WhyI'm Depressed. Harvest House Publishers,1 9 8 4 .


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S ^ ^exer ise lA iV JID XD-H IE

RELUCTiftiMnr M I I OBSJ iARYBy L in da C o urtn ey , R.N.

A pre-dawn grayness was Just beginning to l ight the sky when yhusband placed two cold feet against r y back and with a mighty shovepropelled to the f i r s t agonizing, cold moments of warm-upexe r c i s e s which precede th e more s t r e n uou s a e r ob i c s t h a t I have beent ry ing to make a par t of y ear ly morning schedule. He says he doesth i s because he loves me At 6:15 a.m. , I have y doubts But 5minutes l a t e r , a f t e r ha l f an hour of exe rc i s e and a shower , I sit downwith my Bib le and a cup of t e a and f ind it a little ea s i e r to be l i evet h a t he does indeed have y hea l th , happiness , and minis t ry in mind.

I hate to exerc ise . I am not by natu re a phys ical person, andwi l l do a lmos t anyth ing to a vo id w alk in g around the block . But dur ingt h i s term on th e miss ion f i e l d in w es te rn Kenya, I have d i s cove r edt h a t r e gu l a r exe r c i s e has had an impo r t an t impac t on my min i s t r y ; bothto my f ami ly and to th e Poko t peop le among whom we l i v e .PHVSICAL BENEF ITS OF EXERCISE

Most o f us a r e f am i l i a r wi th a t l e a s t some o f th e phy s i c a lbene f i t s to be de r i v ed from re g ula r e x er c is e . In h e r book Grea t e rHea l th God s Wav. Sto rmie Omar t i an lists some o f th e po s s i b l econ s equence s o f no t g e t t i n g enough e x e r c i s e :

Back p rob l ems , poor po s t u r e , ove rwe igh t , ove r e a t i ng , boned i s e a s e , i n somn i a , ch r o n i c f a t i gu e , va r i c o s e ve in s , h ighcho l e s t e r o l , f r equen t headache s , hyp e r t e n s i o n , h e a r t p rob l ems ,d i g e s t i v e p r ob l ems , stiff J o i n t s , ache s and p a i n s , poo rc i r c u l a t i o n , d ep r e s s i o n , and arthritis (14 , p . 87)Recen t s t u d i e s have a l s o i n d i c a t e d that we cou l d add to h e r list

menstrual cramps and symptoms associated with Pre-menstrual Syndrome.The most bene f i c i a l type o f exe rc i s e i s ca l l ed a e rob ic


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exe r c i s e . This i s any a c t i v i t y s t r enuous enough to i nc r e a se th e he a r tra t e to a t ra in ing or t a rge t l e v e l fo r a per iod of a t l e a s t 5minu te s approx imate ly t h r e e to fou r t im es pe r week. It cou ld berunning, br isk walking, swimming, a fas t game of tennis , squash, orr a q u e t b a l l , or j u s t p l a i n chas ing your k i d s .

Running i s a good exerc ise which requ i re s no expensive equipmentor membership in a spor t s club. Running could be a problem, however,depending on the a rea in which you l ive and work. In our rem ote busha rea of Kara Pokot , peop le run fo r only t h r ee reasons : 1 ) Someonehas j u s t died and they are running from the body, l e s t the same fa teb e f a l l them. 2) They have j u s t heard t h a t the Turkana t r i b e ac ros sth e mounta in a re coming aga in to s t e a l our Poko t c a t t l e . 3 )Something f r ee i s b ein g g iv en away and they want to ge t in on it Am i ss io na ry r un nin g would c e r t a i n l y c r e a t e some exc i t emen t .

Missionaries working in c i t i e s often have access to sports clubswith fac i l i t i e s for squash or tennis . Not only are these gamesb e n ef ic ia l p h y si ca lly , but they a lso al low him to take out h isaggress ions on h is fe l low miss ionar ies or spouse) in a soc i a l l yaccep tab le manner Support ing churches and boards plea se n ote : Thefee for membership in a spor t s club is a good investment fo r the workyou s u p p o r t . It s h o u ld n ev e r be l o o k e d on a s a frill E x e r c i s e canbe as vi ta l to the s u cc es sf ul m i ni st ry of your missionary as theeducat ion which prepared him for t ha t minis t ry .

There a re now many ae rob ic d ance p ro gr am s ava i l ab l e on audioc a s s e t t e and v i deo t a p e s which a p p e a l to women. The re a re evens e ve r a l progr ams us ing con tempora ry Chr i s t i an mus ic . 20) This formo f exe r c i s e i s n o t on ly phy s i c a l l y b e n e f i c i a l and f un . bu t has th eadded advan tage o f p r i v acy - - t h e exe r c i s e can be done in th e s e c l u s i onof your own bedroom so you don ' t have to swea t in f ron t of s t r ange r s


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EXERCISE AND THE RELUCTANT MISSIONARY Page 4

lazy, and worthless. A good reason to become more active is tochallenge those ideas; by being more active you create evidencethat you are not like that . . . Usually the more you do, the betteryou feel. It also provides a helpful diversion from yourdepression by distracting your mind from unpleasant thoughts... Itis a paradox with depression that when you are depressed you needto do more to gain more energy. (19, p. 109Exercise not only can be a treatment for depression, but also an

inoculation against i t . Regular exercise will help to establishhealthy disciplines in our lives. A person w is able to disciplinehimself in exercise will also be able to discipl ine himself in otherareas of his l i fe l ike g ettin g th at quarterly newslet ter writ ten thatis f ou r mon th s ove rdue

In our own l ives and ministry here in Kenya we have foundexerc i se to be an exce l l en t s t r e s s reducer . When we a re in th e middleof a very stressful, tense situation, there is nothing better than toget away for an hour or so, unwind, and gain a fresh perspective.Exercise is nature s best tranqui1izer. I t is good for your bloodpressure , your hea r t , your stomach l in ing , and has no bad s ideeffe ts

SPIRITUAL BENEFITS OF EXERCISELately , I have begun to place increased importance on Pau l s

admonition to the Corinthian church that their bodies are temples ofthe Holy Spiri t . You are not your own you were bought at a price.Therefore honor God with your body. I Corinthians 6:19, 20 NIV .Obv ious ly , Pau l was not speaking here about physical exercise.Nevertheless, I think i t is true that a missionary s body is a tool of


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EXERCISE N THE RELUCT NT MISSIONARY Page min i s t r y , and he i s go ing to miss many e v an g e l i s t i c oppo r t u n i t i e s ihe l a c k s th e phy s i c a l s t am i n a n e c e s s a ry to ta k e ad v a n tag e o f th esitu tions t h e Lord p r o v i d e s .

Our work i n Kara Poko t is a good e xamp l e . We l i v e in a ve ryrugged , moun t a i nou s a r e a . I be l i e v e t h a t much o f th e growth th e Lordhas given in t h i s work i s due to the f a c t t h a t Mike i s ab le to spendl o ng , ho t hou r s h ik i ng on t h o s e moun t a i n s t o r e a ch peop le l i v i n g ini s o l a t e d a r e a s . f ou r -whee l - d r i v e v e h i c l e is g r e a t , bu t some o f th e h idden peop le wi l l only be r e ached by a mis s i ona ry who r e cogn i z e st h e impor t ance o f h is phy s i c a l he a l t h as a t o o l fo r h is m in is t r y t ounreached p e op l e s .

Another impo r t an t s p i r i t u a l b en e f i t I have found in ex e r c i s e i st h a t wa lk i ng , r unn ing , o r e x e r c i s e to Ch r i s t i a n music can g iv e me ano pp ortu nity fo r so l i t ude and communion with God away from the no iseand d i s t r a c t i o n s o f my home and work. When I fo l low exe rc i s e with at ime o f p r ay e r and B ib le s tu dy , I f e e l t h a t I have made a g r e a t st rtto a wonde r fu l day . Exe rc i s e a l so he l p s me g e t my eyes open fo r t h a tt ime of Bib l e s t u dy - - a hard t h ing fo r a per son who former ly c ou l dn ' tbear to s ay , Good morn ing , and who neve r wanted to see ano t h e r humanbe i ng b e f o r e 10 a .m .SO HOW DO YOU DO IT ?

I f you a re l i k e me your problem i s no t how o r when to ex e r c i s e ,you r problem i s mot iva t i on and d i s c i p l i n e . In o rd e r to g e t th e mostbene f i t s from ex e r c i s e , you s ho uld s ch ed ule s p ec i f i e d t imes fo ryou r s e l f , a t l e a s t t h r e e t im es pe r week. I d e a l l y , t h e s e ex e r c i s epe r i od s shou ld be an hour lo ng , bu t even 20 to 30 minu t e s i sb en e f i c i a l . Begin wi th a 5-10 minu t e warm-up o f s low , s t r e t c h i n ge x e r c i s e s . Fo l l ow this wi t h a minimum 15 -m i nu t e pe r i od o f more


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s t r e n u ou s e x e r c i s e . Then f i n i s h wi t h a 5 -1 0 m inu te c oo l - d own o f l e s ss t r e n u o u s activity

Schedu l e your exe r c i s e t ime . Te l l someone e l s e a b ou t it who wi l lcheck up on you Trying to squeeze i t in at various t imes during theday c rea tes an inconsis tency and tends to work agains t d i s c ip l i ne . I fyou d o n t make room fo r ex e r c i s e in your schedu l e , you won t have roomfo r it Don t w a i t to see if you f ee l l i k e it Bel ieve me a t 6:15a .m . , I n e v e r f e e l like it

But if you c a n t even g e t y o ur s e l f to beg in wi th t h i s much startsma l l . J u s t t ake a wa lk - - e v e ry day . And if it t a k e s two co ld f e e ta g a i n s t your back to g e t you to do i t - - g r e a t Be t h ank fu l t h a t th eowner o f t h o s e f e e t l o v e s you and c a r e s enough abou t th e qu a l i t y o fyour s e rv an thood to be an unpopu l a r pe r son a t 6 :15 a .m.


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o Reach a Hidden People

1

Courtney Christ ian Mission

FORWARDING AGENTS: Rich MaryAnn Jenks / P.O. Box2053 / Salem,OR 97308 / 503 394-3958FIELD ADDRESS: Mike LindaCourtney / P.O. Box900 / Kitale, KenyaVo l . 8 , No. 2 Augu s t 1986

KASE I , SPRING 1 9 8 6

NO CURTAIN CALLS, PL EA SE :LEAVING THE MISS ION F IELD GRACEFULLYWe are leav ing the mission f i e ld . Not permanent ly ; we wil l j u s tbe t ak ing an extended fu rlo ugh for a few years un t i l our ch i ld renf in i sh secondary schoo l . This has been our p lan fo r a number of yea r s .But now, a s our depa r t u r e da te looms nea r - -on ly a few weeks away--webegin to think about what e f f e c t t h i s act ion wil l have on our l i ves andon th e l i v e s of th e people wi th whom we have worked.Leaving wi l l not be easy . As we prepare to leave what has beenour home and work fo r th e pa s t s ev er al y ea rs , we look back to th eexamples s e t by o th er m i ss io na rie s who have l e f t th e f i e l d . Some have

left wi th good f e e l i n g s , a s i n ce r e r e g r e t to be l e av ing , and have beenapplauded by t hose on th e f i e l d fo r a job well done. Other s have l e f twith deep b i t t e rness , a revengeful a t t i t ude , and s t rong fee l ings of. p e r s e c u t i o n . _ .

The major problem , as I see it i s t h a t we tend to becomeposse s s i ve of th e work, pa r t i c u l a r l y i f we have been on th e f i e l d fo r anumber of years and have seen th e church grow from in fancy . Because oft h i s possessive a t t i t ude , we lose our ob jec t i v i t y . We make i tdifficult fo r th e Lord to work in th e l i v e s of th e p eop l e . We se e themas ou r people our ch i l d r en ) . We want to so lve t h e i r problems fo rthem, r a t he r than l e t t i ng th e Lord work through them to so lve t h e i r ownp r ob l ems i n their own way .

We b e l i e v e that we know wha t is b e s t f o r t h e pehave been wi th them s i n c e th e b eg in nin g. We have stt h r ough their h a r d sh i p s and g rowing p a i n s . It i s d i fou r s e l v e s on th e back and p o i n t ou t to ou r s e l v e s and ohave su f f e r e d fo r th e peop l e and th e work . When h e l p f u l s u gg e s t i o n a bou t how t h i ng s migh t be ii n su l t e d and f e e l ob l i g a t e d t o po i n t o u t to them howb eg i n n i n g , how f a r we have come, and how much we havep e o p l e and t h e work .

op l e becau se wer ugg l ed wi th themficult t o no t p a tthers how m uch wes om e o n e m ak e s amproved , we a r eb a d w as in thesuffered for the

I f we se e th e work a s God s from th e ve ry beg in n ing , th en it i seasier f o r u s to r emembe r that we are servants o f t h e L o rd and are n o tin t h i s b us in ess fo r our own ego g r a t i f i c a t i o n and l o f t y a sp i r a t i o n s .What we see a s our yea r s o f s a c r i f i c e i s r e a l l y on ly a h e a r t b e a t oft ime in God s eternal p l a n f o r t h e s e p e o p l e . If this i s ou r attitude

will b e easier for us to leave wh e n the L o r d leads us in thatdirection We can wi l l i n g l y t u r n th e work ov e r to o t h e r s e r v a n t sw ith ou t lo o k in g ov e r their s h o u l d e r s and criticizing o r t r y i n g toma i n t a i n a p l a c e f o r o u r s e l v e s i n th e h e a r t s o f th e p e o p l e , ev en t houghwe a r e t h ou sa nd s o f mi l e s away .

Can we l e ave Kase i p a i n l e s s l y ? I d o n t t h i nk we wi l l be ab l e t o .These peop le have wrapped t h emse lv e s t i g h t l y a round our he a r t s . Butt h ey be l ong t o th e Lord , no t t o u s . Th i s i s God s work , no t ou r s .


14/14

schooh omes h i f t

Sunday J a n u a r y 19 , 1986 KaseiIt was a co l d , wet , J anua ry n i gh t in Sea t t l e .A s torm was k i ck ing up waves on LakeWashington and sp ray ing them ove r th ef loa t ing br idges , making dr iv ing a miserab lebusiness . I was in my f ina l year of nursings eve r a l of my classmates and I were headingthe old f loa t ing bridge a f t e r the eveningV e te ra n 's H o s pi ta l.

While we were busy chattering about problem pat ients t raf f ic came toa stand s t i l l . soon noticed a small hatchback car lying on i t s topin the lan e ahead. The driver had obviously not been able to negotiatethe t i gh t curve in the center of the bridge and had h i t the cement walla t an ang l e , caus ing the ca r to f l i p . A fe l low s tuden t nurse and I ranquickly to see i f we could help. A large crowd had already gathered;eve ryone ma i n t a i n i ng a d i s t an ce from th e c a r . No one had bo th e r ed tofind out i f anyone was hur t . I soon discovered the dr iver , a young manabou t 19 yea r s o f age , ups ide down in s id e h is demol i shed veh i c l e . It r i ed to find a pulse but couldn ' t . A young doctor from the VAHospital came running up and knelt beside me. He pronounced the youngm an dead.

I t was midnight when I f inal ly arrived a t home. I flipped on the l ightand for the f i r s t t ime looked down a t my hands. They were covered withblood and t i ny , gl i s tening shards of glass . I spent the r e s t of t ha tnight thinking about the injust ices of l i fe : people who die young orunnecessar i ly , good people who are wronged and chea ted , ch i ld ren whos u f f e r , peop le who a r e h u r t because o f th e w ick ed ness o f o t h e r s .

n i g h t . The re havep e r f o rm . Some t imesim e s when I wa n t toblack and whi t e , romeo n e wo u l d c om e r i11 ^he bad -guys .there isn t a whitet ime s t h ey d i e . Go

unjust situationsn t h a v e all th e an scumstances. B u t I

b e e n other timesI wan t t o c rygo back to t h o s ei g h t o r wrongd in g a lo n g i n aB u t i n real- 1-i f-eh a t in s i g h t .

od peop l e - -God ly t doesn t s e em

wers. I standknow th e One who .

It has been twe lve yea r s s i n ce t h a twhen I ' v e had unp l e a s an t t a s k s too u t , IT ISN 'T FAIR The r e a r e thappy days when every th ing wasI n j u s t i c e was wrong and ve ry soon swbit^--h.a..-and wxjeak -vengenanceon-ath e bad guys some t imes win andInnocent children are hurt a n d s omepeop l e - - have to go t h rough hu r t f u l ,right. It isn t fair. And I dope rp l exed be fo re many of life s c i rh a s th e a n s w e r s .In a few w eeks we w i l l be l e av ing Af r i c a . It h a t I am f r ightened abou t re tu rn in g to Amerl ive and cope with l i f e he re , and th e Unitedl i ke a f or eig n c ou ntr y; an a lie n c ul tu re ,where we plan to l i ve and what we plan to do.wrote down th e answer to those ques t i on s and1 i v e at th e p l a c e whe re t h e waves o f t h e b ruwo r I d wash up on t h e s h o re s o f G o d 's l o v e andg o a l is to r ema i n so i n t u n e w ith God ' s heartc a n ma

d o n ' t mind tellingica. I h a v e learnedStates n ow s e em s toMany p eop l e have a s ke d

Sev e r a l months agohe r e it i s : I_ want

ised an d broken oft en de r h ea lin g m e r c y .cry to the world t hat

ike u se o f my life t o t o u c h and h e a l t h e 1 iv e s o f o t h e r s

yo utomeus

Ito

th isMyH e

COURTNEY CHRISTIAN MISS IONP. 0. B ox 2 0 5 3Sa l em , OR 97308

NON PROF I T ORG .U.S. POSTAGE PA ID

Permit # 5 0 5Sa l em , Oregon

Research/Horizons0. Box 2^27Tenn 79 |

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

courtney michael linda 1986 kenya

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