Celebrations

After a really dark October, November started and continued to be a month of celebrations! It is a testimony of God's goodness and faithfulness. I have really felt supported by prayers over the past two months, and during November, I felt God saying,"I am always with you. I am working in the pain and the joy. Now is the time to celebrate." "But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do." Psalm 73:28

I was so proud of my students at the end of the year. They have all worked very hard. I have seen them grow and develop in their skills as teachers, but also in their growth as Christians and their desire to serve God as missionary teachers. Despite really long and hard maths and ICT exams all students passed! We thank God for his strength and wisdom that he has given the students the past few months. They will be having a month break over December, then four will be returning to teach in community schools here in Kabwe, one will be serving in Kitwe, and three are heading to an orphan school at Lake Tanganyika. Please continue praying for them as they begin work as teachers.

9 months & a Birthday November was my 9 month anniversary of being in Zambia, and it was great to mark the milestone with my birthday. It was a great day / weekend of reflection of where I had come from and looking forward to what is to come. I was blessed to be surrounded by new friends and family here. My students blessed me with prayers and singing, I was showered with blessings by some of the missionaries here who have become like family. Literally showered. They threw two buckets of water over my head... It was a very special day. :)

As part of my birthday celebrations, I decided to head to Ibis Gardens, a hotel about an hour away. Ibis has a swimming pool and is quite a luxury! I really wanted to bring my students with me, because except for three of them, they had never been in a swimming pool before and couldn't swim. They had also been working super hard and I thought it would be a fun day out, learning to swim and just getting to know them better. We hired the OM bus and made a day of it. It was a fantastic day! A really great way to celebrate my birthday, and I was really proud of my students; going from complete fear of the water to beginner swimming skills!