Small Blessings

Just a few more "sleeps" before my hubby returns to me here in Malawi! He has had a busy week so far with visiting my family in VA, seeing as many friends as he could in Charlotte, doing a little shopping for me, helping his brother prepare for the big day, flying to Miami and driving to the Keys and being the best man...he is heading back to Charlotte today and flying out on Tuesday...he is going to be one tired guy when he arrives on Wednesday!

Daniel and I both have realized this week being apart just how much we have grown as individuals and how much our marriage has grown and been strengthened since being here in Malawi...the amount of time that we get to spend together here has been a HUGE blessing and gift to us. We are able to do so much together...and have so much time to talk, dream, think aloud, grow in our love and respect for each other, etc...it has been amazing! And I think we realized just how much we value that time together now that we have been apart this week.

Another HUGE blessing this week was the arrival of my newest nephew (first on my side..our other nephew on Daniel's side was born in Sept...I can't wait to meet my nephews in July.) Ethan Alexander arrived 6 weeks early! 4 lbs. 2 oz..he's a little guy. Thankfully he arrived very healthy...all was good--he was breathing on his own and didn't need to be in the NICU. I think he is staying in the hospital for another few days just to be watched.

Along with a nephew, I also welcome (from around the world), a new sister-in-law. Tim (Daniel's brother) married Julianne on one of the Keys (I can't remember which one) in FL on Saturday. Wish I was there...but I am here...and have lived vicariously through all the pics from my in-box and Facebook this week! Here's a pic (from Daniel's phone, so not the best quality) of the happy bride and groom.

This was the picture that came into my in-box on Monday after Daniel spent a long lay-over at Dulles and was able to spend the day with all my family. Here he is with two of my nieces making silly faces for me!

the beginning of 2 weeks

I just dropped Daniel off at the airport here in Blantyre...he's off for 2 weeks in the US for his brother's wedding next Saturday. When we found out the wedding details a few months back I decided that it was best that I stay here...there are so many reasons that I can't list them here...my heart wanted to go, but it was just best for me to stay. Hopefully these 2 weeks will go by fast...Kayla has a lot of things planned for us to stay busy...including a trip to Lilongwe (the Malawian capital, both of us haven't been yet). So, if you are of the praying type, please say a few prayers for Daniel and I...mostly for safety. I know that so many have spouses that travel on a frequent basis, however, it is a little different and odd being the one staying in Africa and he is the one traveling back to the US...seems opposite. I'm counting down the days already!

New Year :: New Committments

I've just posted a new blog on our McCollums in Malawi site. Check it out. I have recently received a few questions from friends on what life is like here in Malawi and what we do exactly in order to make life functional with our day to day activities. One person wondered what we do if we need a haircut? ha. it made me laugh...because I also had the same question before coming here. Anyway, some of you may have the same type of questions about our life or questions about our "ministry" or relationships/friendships here. I am feeling a question/answer blog coming up...but I need your help. Please either check out my latest blog on our site and leave your questions in the comments...OR you can leave your questions about our Malawian life here on this blogspot. I can't wait to read your questions...

Attack in the Sudan

At 4 am on New Year’s Eve one of the SIM bases in Southern Sudan was attacked by a neighboring tribal group. The mission base was burned, and although it appears the attack was aimed at the mission, all the missionaries escaped with their lives but lost all their possessions. Two of them sustained burns and are now being treated in the Kijabe Hospital in Kenya. The six missionaries and five children on the base are from Nigeria and Ethiopia and have been serving in Southern Sudan for a number of years. We praise the Lord that they are now all safe in Nairobi.

Pray for them as they recover from the trauma and the loss of their belongings.

Below is the account of what happened. If you would like to see some pictures of the village after the burning feel free to check out the link.
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Good morning, Kenya time.

That there is trouble in South Sudan won’t be a surprise to you. But when that trouble hits close to home, when friends and co-workers are attacked, the reality of it is sobering.

One of the villages along the Nile where SIM has a base, a place known as Atar, was attacked in an inter-tribal conflict on New Year’s Eve. Half the village was burned, including the local Sudan Interior Church and Presbyterian church buildings, and SIM’s base was decimated. The three missionary families - two
from Ethiopia and one from Nigeria - escaped in the dark of night with minor burns when their thatched-roof houses were torched. The Lord protected them from a hail of bullets. They lost all their possessions.

They have been evacuated to Nairobi and are receiving care. Please pray for them. They are six adults and five sweet little children, and as you can imagine are very shaken by the experience. Please pray for the Sudanese villagers as well. More than 150 houses were burned to the ground, and some families lost loved ones. Please pray for the attackers, too.

As one of our teammates wrote: “This is a reminder of the realities of tribal unrest in South Sudan – let’s lift them up to our Father and pray for peace and reconciliation in Christ.”

Also pray for ____, who is spending long hours with the families in her member care role. She needs special wisdom dealing with each unique family, each child, each situation.

We’ll attach some pictures of the base, taken at the time our fellow missionary pilots from AIM Air flew to Atar to evacuate the missionaries.

You will be wondering about Doro, which is about 150 miles away from Atar. Our team of nurses including are there, along with two other families and two small children. They’ve had very peaceful, enjoyable Christmas and New Year’s celebrations with the Mabaan community, and we’re thankful that the sort of conflict which has plagued the countryside along the Nile River has not come to our area. Thanks for praying from them as they fly to Nairobi tomorrow for our annual conference gathering. _____ and I will host the Doro health team at Kijabe next Tuesday for a day of fun, reminiscing, and looking ahead to plans for 2010. Thank you! Love to you from all of us

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