xTHE LEES IN GHANA

NEWS and PRAYER REQUESTS

Sept 30: More about Language Learning x Sept 15: Her name will be AuroraxxSept 5: A house of our ownxxx xxxx

We're missionaries, but we're parents too...

October 6, 2005 xx Lots of people used to express concern for Nate, Ben and Hannah when we were in Uganda back in the '80s. They'd ask me, "What about the children? Is it safe for them over there? Aren't you worried about all that they're missing by being in Africa?" My answer was usually, "If God has called us to Uganda, then he's called the children to Uganda too. If we're supposed to be there, they're supposed to be there. They'll be fine!"

Now fast forward twenty years and it's me who's asking, "What about the children? We can't be with them because we're in Ghana!" If truth be told I sometimes find myself wondering, "Is what we're doing here more important than being with Nate, Jess, Hannah and Tam right now? Is it worth being separated from the four people we love the most in this whole wide world? And is it worth the extra burdens they have to carry 'cause they're on their own without us?"

The first answer that registers in my heart is, "No, it isn't, not at all. It's not worth being separated from them." But then comes a second thought: "What if the separation is part of a divine call on all of our lives, ours and theirs? Is it worth it then? And what if it's the Lord who's asking them to carry these extra burdens? Is it worth it then?"

And, under those circumstances, the answer comes back, "Yes, it's worth it. It's still hard, but it's definitely worth it." If the ache of separation and the added burdens are consequences of the Lord's love for a group of people who don't yet know him and his desire for them to know how much he loves them, then they're worth it. And because that's the case, I can say to my children what Paul said to his spiritual son, Timothy: "Join with me in suffering for the gospel, therefore, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life -- not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace."

Paul goes on to say, "I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day." "That day" is the day of the Lord's return when all things will be made new, and those whom I "have entrusted to him" for that day are our three children, our wonderful daughter-in-law and a grandchild on the way. I've entrusted them to God; I've commended them into his care and keeping. Not just once but dozens of times. I can't do any better than that wherever I might be.

We're separated from our children for a season now and can get some pleasure out of the hope that they'll be able to visit us while we're in Ghana. But whatever happens over the next few years, we know that eternity is coming, at which time we'll be with each other forever in ways we can't begin to imagine right now. That's where the real comfort is to be found; that's where the real pleasure lies. "I tell you the truth," Jesus said, "no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life" (Luke 18:29).

More about language learning

September 30, 2005 xx September was our "move-into-the-new-house" month, so a lot of time had to be devoted to moving (the first week of the month) and then settling in, and this after much of August was given over to taking Tamarah to Sahel Academy. We also had to find a new language helper since Solomon, our original teacher, reported that new job responsibilities kept him from meeting with us. With the help of a BCA pastor, we were directed to a Debi speaker named Jongi. We met with him for the first time on September 12 and he's proven to be every bit as good as Solomon.

Allison Howell, an anthropologist who knows a thing or two about learning a new language, reccomends that we get what we need, learn what we get, use what we learn and then evaluate what we've used (and comes up with a great acronym for the process: G.L.U.E.). Well, we're getting plenty to learn: We have pages and pages of text and hours of audio files that we need to review. But we're only learning half of what we get and using even less of what we've learned. My evaluation of the situation is an easy one: We need to learn more of what we already have and then use it again and again in order to master it. It's in our heads; we want it on our lips and in our hearts.

Making opportunities to learn and use what we get continues to be a top priority. To that end we're looking for a room to rent in Gwoolu where the Debi dialect is spoken. We're also looking for a second language helper with whom we can do drills and review memorization work.

Jessica is pregnant!

September 15, 2005 xx We're going to be grandparents! We've known since early June but are only going public with the news now. Jess was probably about two weeks pregnant when we left the states on May 4 but she hadn't yet taken the pregnancy test and didn't want to tell us until we were settled in. It's a good thing she didn't -- it would have made it a lot harder for us to leave the states if we'd known we would be grandparents by the end of the year. We grinned from ear to ear with the news but we had an ache in our hearts too: Since we arrived in Ghana we've been telling people it would be hard to be here if our son and daughter-in-law had a baby, but so it will be.

Can you believe it? Us --- grandparents! Are we that old??? All the ultra-sounds suggest that the baby is doing well and the most recent one revealed that our first grandchild will be a girl. "We're going to call her Aurora Nouveau," announced Nate. "It means 'New Dawn.'" Join us as we pray for them and praise God for the blessing of a new life.

Thanks for praying about our need for a house.

September 5, 2005 xx We're in! After a three month search and as many months at the Ghana Water and Sewage Guesthouse (it was better than the name suggests!) we found a beautiful house to rent just outside of Tumu. It's really one-of-a-kind: The owner is a Ghanaian lawyer who works for the United Nations in Tanzania and seems glad to have us as renters. Next up: A room to rent in the village of Gwoolu, about 45 minutes from the location of this house and the center of the area in which we'll be doing most of our work. The Gwoolu room needs to be part of a larger family compound where we'll be able to hear the Debi language 24/7. Click here for more pictures of our new house and a photo-tour of Tumu.

The Message of the Cross...is wisdom to those who are being saved.

July 16, 2005 xxThe timing was perfect: The SIM-GHANA Spiritual Life Retreat, an annual gathering of in-country missionaries for prayer, bible study and R&R, was held this past week in the city of Kumasi. Our speaker, a member of the SIM-UK board of directors named David Dryer, taught from 1 Cor. 1 - 4. His message was the "message of the cross" (1 Cor 1:18) as revealed in these chapters, a foolish message as the world sees things but a supremely wise one from God's point of view. David is a sensitive and thoughtful expositor of God's word who pointed us to the power and glory of Christ crucified again and again. "I will not boast in anything," began one of the songs he taught us,

"No gifts, no power, no wisdom.
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,
His death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from his reward?
I cannot give an answer.
But this I know with all my heart:
His wounds have paid my ransom."

David's aim was to leave us more in love with Jesus at the end of the retreat, and he hit his mark: Love him more we do.

And we love our fellow missionaries more for having attended the retreat as well. Living together, working together, eating together and especially worshiping together has a way of doing that . Our SIM-GHANA team is a crazy melange of Australians, Canadians, Brits, Koreans and Americans. If you took the gospel out of us we would be a train-wreck waiting to happen, but our unity grows by the power of the crucified Christ.

The week has been a huge encouragement to us. We'll be back in our home town of Tumu on Monday and ready to resume our language learning.

The tense depends on the modifier at the end of the sentence...I think.

July 9, 2005 xx We learned to speak Rutooro when we worked in Uganda back in the mid 1980s, so we were excited about the prospect of learning another African tribal language when we came to Ghana. Two things are very different this time around, however: Our brains are 25 years older and Sisaali is a few times further removed from English, both in its grammar and in its sounds (and then there's the fact that the dialect we're learning isn't yet a written language). Here's a sample sentence: La si diriba la lori Gwoolu la. Did you notice that the word "la" appears three times in that short sentence? It means "we" the first time around, "our" the second time and "at," "to" or "into" the third time (and the sentence means, "We will drive our car to Gwoolu"). We've got a sneaking suspicion that it has other meanings as well...

But easy or hard, written or not, learning to speak Sisaali is a privilege because it's a sign to the Sisaala people that we care about them. Better still, it'll be a sign that the Lord God cares about them when the gospel of his Son is shared with them in their language. Always pray for our language learning!

About the youngest foli-re in Tumu...

July 2, 2005 xxxxxx"HOW WILL TAMARAH MANAGE?" That was the question most often asked of us before we left for Ghana. "She'll be alone and without peers while in Tumu," they told us, "and she'll have to go to a boarding school in the fall." "There won't be any malls, no movies, no swimming pools where she can hang with friends, no phones or internet connections... Did you know that another couple returned to the U.S. out of concern for their own daughter when she reached Tam's age?"

So, how has Tamarah managed? Brilliantly. Our very sociable 14 year old has taken everything in stride, and we do mean everything: The separation from friends and consequent loneliness, the grime, the mosquitos, the dramatically slower pace of life, the unpredictable electricity, the heat, the long car rides on unpaved roads, the three-hour church services in an unintelligible language, the uncertainty of our housing situation, the solitude while Sally and I are holed up with a language helper... Name the trial and she's trounced it with the help of her music, a bag of first-rate books, a couple of computer games, a sewing project and, most important of all, the quiet time she spends with the Lord each evening. "But God..." she often says, and then confesses a bibilcal world-view.

Many of you promised to pray for Tamarah. Well, the Lord is answering in tangible ways. So much has encouraged us since we arrived eight weeks ago, but most encouraging of all has been our Tam's willingness to offer up her body as a living sacrifice in view of Christ's mercy. It's the gospel at work in her, the same gospel we're bringing to the Sisala of Ghana.

We're off to the Upper West Region

June 8, 2005 xxxG Mid-May was all about traveling the length of Ghana, moving from one missionary home to another, learning the route from south to north, checking out the best places for breaks during the long two-day trip and visiting Bible Church of Africa congregations along the way. It was all in order to at last explore Ghana's remote Upper West Region, home to the Sisaala and our future home as well. We drove back to Accra a little more than a week ago to wrap up our orientation, take care of business with immigration and get permission to travel across Ghana's border into Burkina Faso when August rolls around and it's time to take Tamarah to boarding school. And now, come this Friday morning, we'll head north all over again, this time to begin our life among the Sisaala.

But there's just one hitch: We don't yet know where we're going to live when we get there. That is, we haven't yet found a house to rent. There was one in a village called Bugaboi which was oh-so-tempting, a house built by another missionary couple about fifteen years ago and empty for the last four years (click here for some pictures), but the gospel has already been shared in the area's villages and we're burdened to take it where it hasn't been before. From there we turned to the town of Tumu to investigate a couple of homes being built for rent by area businessmen. Though closer to the area which tugged at our hearts during the trip, neither worked out for different reasons.

Where's that put us? Only the best place possible: In God's care, and we're more than okay with that. Though we didn't find a house for ourselves, we returned to Accra convinced that we should live and work among the Dewi (pronounced Deh-wee) speaking Sisaala. They're the least evangelized of the SisaalaÉ. A mosque stands at the center of most of their villages.

So it's off to Upper West on Friday with our eyes wide open for the house that's been prepared for us and is waiting to be discovered. We'll canvas Tumu again for the possibilities we may have overlooked and then check out the villages of Gwoolu and Jafeesi, both to the west of Tumu. And in the meantime we've arranged to rent two rooms at a government guesthouse in the town of Tumu. Penny, a veteran member of the Upper West team, lived in this guesthouse for six months and assures us that it's very livable. "It's even got a flush toilet," she explained, "though the landlord won't let you flush toilet paper."

On a personal note

June 5, 2005 xxxG We're at the one-month mark here in Ghana and the three of us are doing well in every way. Just before we left the states I quoted Frederick Buechner in a card sent around to friends and supporters: "You'll know that you've heard God's voice when you're called to a place where your deep gladness meets one of the world's deep needs," and then hoped that this would be the case for us. Thankfully, it is. The Lord's presence is wonderfully tangible, our prayer-life is sharper than it has been in a long time and trusting the Lord seems like the only reasonable thing to do rather than the "last resort" option which it sometimes was back home. Yes, we've only been here four weeks; we're enjoying the "honeymoon" phase of our life in Ghana and we'll surely feel the heartbreak of disappointments and discouragement s in the days to come. But an Ebenezer is deserved ala 1 Samuel 7:12 just the same: "Thus far has the Lord helped us!" Thank you for your prayers!

And practically speaking: The other SIM missionaries are A-#1, Tamarah hasn't yet given up on her parents, Sally is finding her groove and I've lost 20 pounds since we touched down on May 5 (I s'pose those Starbucks Caramel Macchiotos I enjoyed back home had a few more calories in them than I was willing to admit!). We're a grateful trio.

Our First Week in Ghana

May 9, 2005 xxxGGIVE THANKS TO THE LORD! We arrived in Ghana on Thursday afternoon, May 5, as scheduled after a blissfully uneventful trip from Philadelphia through Frankfurt: Immigration, customs, baggage, everything was in order, including the pick-up at the airport by the SIM-GHANA country director, Ruby M., who whisked us through town to the SIM-GHANA guesthouse where we'll be staying through Friday, May 13.

Sally and I feel a little deja vue; Ghana might as well be Uganda when it comes to sights, sounds and smells. It's not a stretch to write that we feel at home here. Tamarah, though, is wide-eyed with wonder and a bit on the quiet side, this being her first time in Africa. She's apparently taking it all in and doing her best to process the avalanche of new information and experiences. A beggar with a baby strapped to her shoulder approached us at the airport while we were making our way to the SIM vehicle in the parking lot. She gestured for a handout with plaintive eyes, and this first encounter with the depths of poverty here in Africa moved Tamarah to tears. It was the first of many such encounters.

The week in front of us is all about introductions to Accra, Ghana's capitol, and SIM's ministries and protocols. We were taken to a couple of the markets in town on Friday before jet-lag caught up with us and we crashed mid-afternoon. Saturday was more of the same; Sunday was worship with a local Bible Church in Africa congregation (BCA is the fellowship of churches started by SIM missionaries) followed by a gathering of fellow missionaries at the guesthouse on Sunday afternoon. We'll get a history of SIM's work in Ghana on Monday and apply for our local drivers licenses on Tuesday (learning the rules of the road should be interesting: Stop lights don't seem to have the same authority here in Ghana that they do in the states and driver's seem to have a very special relationship with their horns). On Wednesday we apply for our work visas and on Thursday we review financial policies and go shopping for the vehicle of choice here in Ghana, the pickup truck. On Friday we'll begin a two day drive to the "Upper West Region" as it's called for our first look at the area which we'll be calling home for... four years? Eight years? Twenty years? The Lord knows, and we're glad to leave it in his hands. Given the importance of where we'll finally settle (it'll have implications for everything going forward), we covet your prayers for wisdom and discernment as we go.

Our support is at 100.4%!!!

Apr 21, 2005 xxxOur support hovered at an astounding 95% for a couple of months as we approached the day we'd booked for departure, but 100% was required to get the final go-ahead from the SIM Travel Department as their own April 19 deadline approached for the purchase of our tickets. Would it be go or no? Away or delay? The Lord answered when three families pledged the outstanding 5%. And just to make sure we got the message, the last of those three pledges put us above the 100% mark by about half a percent of our budget. Raising financial support is the ideal preparation for all we'll be doing in Africa: It requires considerable patience and trust while obliging us to look to others for help ; in a word, it humbles us, and the Lord knows, we need boundless humility if we're going to share the gospel with the Sisaala in a way which gives all the glory to him.

The SIM Travel Office has spoken...

March 10, 2005 xxxThe words we've been longing to hear for close to two years were heard yesterday in a brief but precious phone conversation with Sheila Philemon, SIM USA's Travel Coordinator. "Travel dates?" she asked. There was a pause and then she continued: "Hmmmm...just a minute while I pull up your information...yes, here it is: May 4, 2005. Philadelphia to Frankfurt, Germany and then Frankfurt to Accra, Ghana. " "That's it?" I asked. "That's it," she answered.

The date is set! Can you believe it? We can't. It feels unreal. Are we really going to make this move? T hat our present routines are about to change and a new chapter (no... a new volume ) of life is about to begin is almost too much to take in. But the date is now down in our calendars, as are the other dates related to this one: I'll give my two week notice at work on March 22... Sally's last day at work will be April 1... My last day at work will be April 5... Tamarah's last day at school will be April 29... and then, before you know it, it'll be May 4 and...and...we need your prayers.

February was a bad month for us Lees to be on the road...

March 5, 2005 xxxWe moved into the Calvary Church guesthouse on Sunday, January 30th with the help of folks from Calvary Church and five days later I was hit by a car while riding my bicycle to work. I can now confirm what I've all along suspected: When metal hits a man it's going to be bad for the man. I'd just finished making my way up a long hill when a car came up from behind at about 40 miles an hour and clipped me. I suffered a concussion and have no memory of being hit, flying from my bike or lying on the ground. My first memory is of the ambulance driver lifting me onto the stretcher, cutting my bike pants and telling me that I'd been in an accident. I ended up with a broken left leg, torn ligaments in my right collar bone, two herniated disks, bruises all over my body and a month away from work on Short Term Disability. It could have been a lot worse. I'm on the mend now; the doctor says the cast can come off by the end of March.

That was four weeks ago, so all's well that end's well, right? Not so fast! Our car was wrecked -- and perhaps totaled -- this past Saturday while Sally was driving Tamarah to a school event. Another car abruptly turned into her driving lane; she couldn't help but hit him. The driver claims he didn't see the on-coming traffic because of sun glare; the policeman on the scene said, "I don't buy it; the sun was behind you," and cited him for wreckless driving. Mercifully, Sally and Tam walked away without a scratch.

The outcome: Sally and I are starting to think we must be on the right track with this Ghana thing. We wouldn't be drawing as much fire from the enemy if that wasn't the case! After asking, "How are you?" everyone's next question has been, "Does this change your plans for Ghana?" Answer: No way!

In search of a travel bargain...

March 2, 2005 xxxThe folks in the travel department at SIM headquarters in Charlotte have officially opened up a file for us. That means they're on the lookout for travel bargains between Philadelphia and Accra (Ghana's capitol). We might have firm travel dates in a couple of weeks.

Our monthly support was bumped up to 94% in an unusual way...

Feb 22, 2005xxxI An email from Ed Welch, our Appointee Director at SIM headquarters in Charlotte, brought us some welcome news today, though it was at someone else's expense. A husband and wife team who'd been trying to make it to the mission field for seven long years finally gave up their dream of overseas service; family medical needs obliged them to stay in the States. The silver lining in this cloud? A substantial amount of cash had been contributed to the mission on their behalf which needed to be redirected into other accounts. The money was parceled out among four families on the verge of leaving for their fields of service. We were one of those families! The deposit to our account amounted to a four year pledge of just over $200 per month and bumped our support level from 90% to 94%.

Making a straight path for us in the wilderness...

Feb 22, 2005 xxxI "When we left Ghana we thought we would be returning but our plans have changed. We were wondering if you'd be interested in buying the tools, household furniture and kitchen things which we had to leave behind..." Feb 22 was a great day for emails. I received this one from Cora Klay just a few hours after receiving the email from Ed Welch mentioned above. Cora and her husband, Ken, had been missionaries in Ghana for 25 years and were offering us nylon tow ropes, a kitchen table, five gallon tupperware containers and everything in between, all at a huge cost savings to us. The Lord, it seems, is "preparing a table for us in the wilderness" (Psalm 23).

Would you pray for:

1. Our language learning: It's a long way from where we are to fluency but that's our goal.

2. A room to rent in the village of Gwoolu, about 45 minutes from the location of our Tumu house. This room needs to be part of a larger family compound where we'll be able to hear the Debi language 24/7.

3. Our children: Nate and Jess are expecting their first born in January; Hannah is a freshman at Houghton; Tam attends Sahel Academy in Niger. Hannah wrote, " Be encouraged, mom and dad: Your kids are doing great and are in Gods hands." Praise Him for that!