Christmas 2006 - How can it be?

Looking back on the months gone by,
As a new year starts and an old one ends,
We contemplate what brought us joy,
And we think of our loved ones and our friends.
Excerpt from a poem by Joanna Fuchs

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How can it be? Another year is almost history! Yes, we have been blessed again this past year with good health, a wonderfully supportive family, and perhaps most importantly, being given an opportunity to serve God through our mission work. As we get older, each year becomes more precious. We sometimes wonder: “Is this too much? Should we slow down? We’re far too busy. Let’s ‘really’ retire. Maybe we shouldn’t go to developing countries where good quality medical assistance is nearly nonexistent. Time to sit back and let others take over.” However, we always come to the same conclusion—that God still has a purpose for us in our lives. We continue to have a vision to provide our services in a vitally important area in missions today—to help improve and modernize the libraries in theological colleges and other mission institutions in developing countries.

During the past year, we went on three volunteer mission trips of about seven weeks each: From January to March and September to early November we continued our work at the Reformed Institute for Theological Training (RITT) near Eldoret, Kenya. In April and May we took our ninth trip to the Pacific Islands Bible College (PIBC) in Guam and Chuuk. We are under annual appointment by Christian Reformed World Missions as long-term volunteer consultants.

Our work at RITT is progressing nicely. When we arrived in January, thanks to the support and work of Partners Worldwide, the new Library Resource Centre (LRC) building was nearing completion. Therefore, we had to work in the cramped temporary library until it was ready, but were able to make a good start in computerizing the collection. During that time, a work group from the U.S. installed a ceiling in the LRC/administration building. The library was ready for occupancy, but a major obstacle remained. It had no shelving or furniture, and funds were not available to purchase or make them. When we left, the bare library facility could not be used, although it was dedicated in April. Hundreds of Reformed Church of East Africa (RCEA) people came to the dedication. To many of them, it was a symbol of hope for the resurgence of the RCEA denomination!

From September to early November, we spent another seven weeks at RITT. Some generous U.S. donors had provided money for shelving and furniture, which had been ordered and were expected shortly. Wrong. Half of the shelving arrived—but only about ten days before we were scheduled to leave. e did make good use of our time while we waited by continuing to develop the collection, establishing LRC policies and procedures and working with the faculty and students to make better use of the library. A few days before we left, we were able to move into the new library, even though we hadn’t received the rest of the shelving and most of the furniture. We are planning to return to RITT in October-November next year to continue the development of the LRC.

Developing libraries to their full potential is not an easy task. In April and May we returned to Guam/Chuuk to nurture the development of the five island libraries that are part of the Pacific Islands Bible College where Ray continues to serve as the head librarian. Ray also taught a college level introductory library course. Most of the island students have had little or no exposure to modern libraries, except at PIBC. Therefore, it was quite an eye opener to them. When we first went to PIBC in 1999, the Guam campus had five students. Now that campus has about 60 fulltime and 40 part time students. When the Chuuk campus and island teaching facilities are added in, the College (which now has full U.S. accreditation) has approximately 250 full and part time students currently enrolled! We feel blessed to be able to contribute to its development and witness, and plan to return there March-April of 2007.

We have also undertaken a substantial new mission endeavor. Under the auspices of Christian Reformed World Missions, we are providing leadership to develop a network of Christian librarians to work alongside us to strengthen libraries in mission institutions in developing countries. The formation of the support network is just in its in initial stages and is a formidable challenge and task. It is a collaborative project by CRWM and Reformed Church of America World Missions, but any Christian librarian or library supporter who has a heart to help would be most welcome. (Let us know if you would like to know more about ways you could help—you don’t have to go to a foreign country.)

In addition to all of this, our plans are set to return to Bangladesh from late January to early March to continue to provide leadership and guidance in the development of the library at the Christian College of Bangladesh (CCTB).

A few personal notes:

When Ray went to spend some time at the Chuuk library (600 miles across the Pacific from Guam), Barb decided to go down a waterslide at one of the local tourist hotels with a young Palauan friend. She underestimated the pitch of the slide, as well as the slippery mat that she was on, ascended the wall of the chute and came down with a thud. The result: a cracked rib and collapsed shoulder. It has pained her ever since, and surgery on her shoulder is still an option, but she is slowly getting better. Is she getting too old for this type of activity? What was she thinking?

We celebrated our 45^th wedding anniversary in June. Since we were camping at Holland State Park, all of our children and grandkids came for the weekend, and joined us at a restaurant for dinner in Holland. It was a special occasion for us.

A Burmese friend invited us, to attend the Chin Festival in Frederick, MD. We had a wonderful time reconnecting with some of the Burmese who had fled from Myanmar (Burma) to Guam because of persecution. We have kept in contact with (and visited with some of them at their homes) about 10 of them since they left Guam and received asylum in the US. What a blessing they have been in our lives. You may recall some of the stories several years ago about what they went through.

All of our children and their families are doing well. They, like all young families are “busy busy”, but are able to spend some quality time with us when we return from our trips. We try, as much as possible, to be home for the winter holidays and during the summer months which gives us plenty of opportunities to get together. Two of our grandkids are graduating from high school next June (Brenden and Harmony). They both plan to go off to college, so we probably will see less of them in the future.

Many times, when we write about our volunteer mission work, we feel we are merely conveying information about the projects we are involved in and our day-to-day work. However, our mission objectives go far beyond our daily work and activities. We see our work as a means to an end. Our overriding goal in our mission work is to demonstrate Christ in our lives and to help the students and others we meet along the way walk more closely with Him. It is always our desire to be God’s instruments in making a difference in the lives of those we encounter. We spend as much time as possible developing open and honest friendships and work hard to establish relationships based on trust and equality. Many times spiritual needs and concerns surface. It is at that point that we can begin to be helpful—as trusting friends who really care about the individuals, ethnic groups and institution we are serving.

Blessings to all of you during this Season in which we celebrate God’s Wondrous Love and in the upcoming New Year.

Ray and Barbara