Recent outings and activities

We have been keeping busy the past couple of weeks. Last weekend we went to our 1st Congolese wedding. It was an ALL day affair. It was for HOPE Loan Officer, Fabrice. The HOPE Congo staff did not inform us that even though the invitation says 1:30 they really mean it starts at 3:30! We were a little bitter! haha We got there at 1:20 and sat around until 3:30 when the bride and groom entered. The wedding did not end until 5pm. The wedding was beautiful. It was full of singing by an awesome praise team. But getting to the church at 1:20 made for a long day! At the end of the wedding the guests formed a long greeting line down the church aisle. Everyone brought their gift to give to the bride and groom. The HOPE staff put their money together and bought a refrigerator for the couple, and some HOPE guys actually carried the fridge up to the couple! They were champs. Another family brought an oven and carried it up to the front of the church too! 

Nate preached at  church last Sunday and did a great job! He is a natural. We were also able to take a picture of the front of the church with Rev. Antoine speaking. He is the pastor of the church as well as the DS of the area. The Brazzaville Nazarene church is the only Nazarene church in the area and is only 1 year old. We are glad to be apart of this church. This Saturday we are helping out with a youth event. It will be a full day of prayer walks around the city, playing sports with some neighborhood kids, as well as delivering some gifts to some families. They also asked Nate to bring his video camera. We will probably get some interesting footage! 

Last Sunday we got invited to visit "Villa Washington." This is the US Embassy recreational facility. We can only go if a US Embassy employee is with us. There is a pool, work out facility (with really nice equipment!), and a basketball court. We enjoyed relaxing all afternoon with our new friends Joshua, Somei, and Jonathan. Joshua is the IT guy for the embassy and his wife and little boy are so sweet! We enjoyed getting to know them and playing with little Jonathan in the pool. 

Allie made Christmas cookies Tuesday evening with her friends, Ann and Angie. Angie and Allie brought the Christmas cookie cutters and Ann provided the cookies and icing. They are pretty proud of themselves! The cookies look good and taste good too. Allie was also busy interviewing clients this week. Everyday she went out into the field to meet with clients and take pictures of their businesses. She really enjoys going to see the different districts of Brazzaville and meeting all the clients. 

We have made some plans for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. We will update everyone with pictures after the holidays! We are definitely missing our families during this time, but God has blessed us with some wonderful friends. We have had many invitations to different events over the holidays. Everyone is making sure we don't get lonely. We are so very grateful for God's provision.

Christmas Cookies!

Congolese Wedding

Nate in the greeting line

HOPE staff carrying the present to the bride and groom

The Nazarene Church and the DS Rev. Antoine

Jonathan at the US Embassy Pool

Allie at a HOPE group meeting

My God is Faithful

I, Allie, got up at 5:45am this morning to go on a 3 mile walk with my new friend, Ann. Nate thought I was crazy and warned me not to wake him up! haha Ann has been a missionary in and around Congo for 20 years. She fluently speaks English, French, and Lingala (a native tribal language). I walked to the outdoor market with her yesterday and she was chit chatting with everyone along the way. Everyone knows her and loves her. She has been so welcoming to both Nate and I since we arrived. She gave me some of her extra Christmas decorations. Now it looks a little bit like Christmas in our apartment! When she invited me to walk with her this morning I was a little hesitant because of the time, but I decided to go ahead and give it a try!

It was a wonderful time and food for my soul. We walked all through the city. Since it was so early, the city was still quiet and peaceful, unlike the usual constant honking of taxis and people everywhere. I got to see many new sights and areas of town. Ann new people all along the way. We first passed a homeless man that was sleeping under a tree. Ann said she has been praying for him for a long time. He would never talk to her when she would say hello and then one morning he finally did! He sat up and said, "Well hello old lady!" haha She said she has never been so happy to be called old. Now he will wave at her when she passes. Next we passed several Congolese boxers. They were training and doing all kinds of exercises on the road. We walked a huge circle and ended up walking right next to the Congo River. The view was beautiful. The sun was coming up, the water was dark, and there were skinny canoe like boats all over the river with men throwing their nets out to catch fish. The city line of Kinshasa, the capital city of DRC, was right across the river.

Ann and I exchanged our stories of how God had called us to the Congo, and talked about her days of growing up in northern Canada. As I walked along listening to Ann and gazing at the Congo river I felt full of God's presence and peace. Like he was telling me "You are right where you need to be, Allie." God has been so faithful to Nate and I through this whole transition. He daily gives me what I need and has blessed me with some wonderful friends. I thank God every day for putting Nate in my life. He is a constant source of encouragement and love.

God has proven this verse true in my life, Psalm 25:10 "The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands."

Picture from around town and HOPE clients

We have been able to take more pictures of the city this week. Matt, the senior accountant with HOPE, went shopping with us on Saturday. We went to Marche LaPlane (sp?), an outdoor veggie market, and bought fresh produce and went to Park and Shop (our favorite American like grocery store). We also walked around the downtown area for a while. Many of the roads downtown are paved which is nice. When going outside of the downtown area all the roads become dirt. Now during rainy season the roads can get pretty nasty. Taxis still try to drive through some parts, but the mud definitely slows people down. 

A few people from HOPE are visiting this weekend and next week. There are 3 guys from corporate and the Managing Director of HOPE DRC. We had a nice pot-luck dinner with everyone Friday evening at our apartment. Marie and I both cooked several dishes. It was a great time of fellowship. We also got to play Dutch Blitz with Marielle! 

Allie was able to interview 2 clients on Wednesday. It was an enjoyable time for her. She loves to hear about the lives being changed by the ministry of HOPE. Nkomo is the owner of a barber shop, La Benediction (The Blessing). He took out a loan with HOPE to make necessary improvements in his shop, including new swivel chairs, razors, sterilizer, air conditioner, and window panes. Nkomo said he is now able to help support his nieces and nephews by paying for their needed medications and school supplies. She also interviewed Nkounkou, but will not be able to take pictures of her business until next week. She owns a small retail store where she sells various products. Nkounkou used to receive loans from another organization, but she has decided to work with HOPE because she feels HOPE is much more organized and dependable. Both of these clients were very grateful for the loan they had received from HOPE. 

We found out this week that we will each be able to receive French tutoring! We are very grateful and eager to begin. Please pray for our French language learning over the next few weeks and months!

Matt and I in front of a monument downtown Brazza

One of the several 6 way circles in downtown Brazza

Monument of a President

Central Bank

HOPE Client group meeting with Loan Officer, Chancy (far right)

Typical inside of a church (where HOPE meetings occur)

NkounKou is a small business owner and client of HOPE's. I was able to interview her last week.

Typical street (outside of downtown)

We are currently in rainy season. This is what many of the roads look like this time of year.

Nkomo, the man giving the boy a haircut, is the owner of this Barber shop. 

Nkomo in front of his business. I was able to interview him last week as well.