Liberian Christmas

Hey everyone-Ryan and I want to wish everyone a late Merry Christmas! We are doing well here. Our office closed down for this week and the next, so we've been able to relax some which has been nice. And I am trying to catch up on some work too! :)
The Liberians love Christmas! When the office closed last Friday we all sang "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" and everyone left so happy...kind of like kids on the last day of school. We then continued to celebrate with a Christmas party on the beach. Something else kind of funny is one of the sayings you hear at Christmastime here...."Give me my Christmas." Strangers will say this to you, meaning they want something (money) from you. Interesting for sure!
A lot of the international SP staff went home for Christmas, but the few of us here on Christmas day got together for a potluck. We went to a home on the beach and enjoyed a great meal with all types of food. Afterward we sat on the porch and listened to the ocean while one of the guys played guitar and we sang worship songs. It was really a special time....I know for me personally it was a good time to reflect on why we are here and to be encouraged by the Lord and by our co-workers who are here for the same purpose.
It was definitely a different Christmas for us. It didn't necessarily "feel" like the Christmas we know, but it was a great memory that we'll always have. And for the first time I think I realized that we didn't have to have Christmas decorations, presents, or even relatives around for it to be Christmas. :) The focus really was on Christ, and that was an amazing feeling.
So, now we're looking forward to 2009 and all God wants to do! Thanks so much for your prayers as we continue to settle in and adjust. We need them and can feel them. :)

Arrival!

Hey everyone this is Ryan! Dayna is busy working on a Saturday so being the sweet and caring guy I am I decided to help her out with this whole blogging thing.

We arrived here in Liberia last Sunday and have been here for our first week. Liberia is very different from the other country I've been in mostly because of the poverty level. All of my other travels had nice places where you could find an escape, but Liberia really has none. It is amazing to see the way people live throughout the city and the way the war has affected the country. There is still a lot of war damage and displaced peoples as the country gets itself off the ground and there is a lot of work to be done. I went on a tour through the downtown Monrovia area and was amazed how crowded and congested it was. People just mill around, walking everywhere. There are buildings which were destroyed in the war and are now filled with people who have no home but now live in the bombed out buildings. People just live wherever they can find shelter it seems. Liberia is truly an amazing place thus far.

I have not started working with my project but will on Monday and I am really looking forward to it. I am also looking forward to my first trips "upcountry" to the smaller villages where SP is working.

Dayna has hit the ground running from when we got here. She only had a few days with the finance director who she is replacing, so it was a mad dash to get her caught up to speed. It is very overwhelming at times so I am staying out of her way, I mean supporting her the best I can.

Our living arrangements are very good. We have a generator that is on a few hours a day and then battery power the rest of the day. The battery's do not last all night sometimes and then our fans wont work and it gets hot, but I think we'll get used to that. We live above a church with security and a fence and the whole bit so it is very safe. Right beneath us people are living in their shacks so it is a very strange feeling to be living so closely to such poverty. But I can say that the roosters that they own start crowing at 6 am and dont stop all day. Hopefully I can get used to that, but I don't know. Those roosters are loud.

Well that's it for now! We are working on taking some pictures and will post them as soon as we do.

SP Orientation in Boone

Hi everyone! Ryan and I just finished a week of orientation in Boone, NC before we head out to Liberia. For those of you who don't know all the details of what we're doing, Ryan and I are going to work with Samaritan's Purse in Monrovia, Liberia, for one year. Ryan will be a Program Manager for a large food distribution project, and I will be the Finance Manager for the office. We're so excited as we had hoped to return to work with SP after we were married last year. It's been really neat to see how God has worked to bring us to where we are today. I'm going to try my best to keep up with this blog (maybe with some help from Ryan:) so that you guys can hear what's going on with us, and so we can also keep in touch with what's going on in your world!

It's been snowing some here in Boone this week which was fun. The weather in Liberia is hot and humid all year (with a rainy season and a dry season). Also just FYI, the time difference is 5 hours ahead. Anyways, this week in Boone was great to see old SP friends and also meet some new ones, and to be reminded of how God is working through SP all over the world.

Many of you have already asked how you can pray.As we leave on Sunday you can pray for safe travels and for a good transition as we settle in. I was reading the other day and saw this verse that I thought was also just a great prayer for us in general for this year.

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 "To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of His calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by His power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ."

Thank you all! I will try to get a website up with some pictures as soon as I can.