Greetings from the desert! My coffee is perking and the call to prayer is echoing across the wadi from the nearby mosque. Early morning has once again arrived; a new day is here.

After weeks of enforced waiting, I finally made some definitive progress this week. Many of you know I am not good at waiting. I like to make a plan and go forward. If the plan needs to be changed, so be it, but waiting is not one of my gifts. Several years ago a friend of mine also named Tim gave a talk at a men’s retreat about “wait training.” Read the rest of this entry »

Off into the sand

Greetings from the desert!! The mornings are actually comfortably cool, making coffee a great drink. Today I have a blend called “Montana Premium.” I freely admit that Montana is not high on my coffee list of ‘must try’ blends, but the coffee was a gift — a great gift, it turns out. The blend is a nice, dark, very rich mix with a smell to tantalize the senses. I am enjoying the coffee old school American style — black, and no hint of cardamom or sugar to cloud the flavors.

This has been a great Arabic cultural week for us. Wednesday we joined with a group of off-roaders to travel the dunes out in the desert. Our friend Stephen invited us along for the new adventure. Read the rest of this entry »

Good morning from the Desert!! The morning air is cool and clear; the coffee is hot and dark. Out front of the guest house, the Impatiens are all in bloom. Out back the sand is still sand. Earlier I listened to the rising, falling song of the morning ‘call to prayer.’ Gone are the mornings of crowing roosters and the views across the Rift; God has called us to a new place to serve. We are settling in to our new adventure. Read the rest of this entry »

Greetings from the Meads!! Although it is early in the morning, the air is already warm, the skies clear, and the sun rising. I long for the view of the great valley but settle for a small courtyard with a few plants fighting to survive. Coffee is still my familiar friend as I enjoy the quiet. We are slowly learning about life in our new region. The last week was filled with new foods, new people, new places, and new traditions. I suppose that is one reason I cling to my familiar coffee mug and early morning habits.

One of the most difficult concepts for us has been changing our day of corporate worship. We have been used to joining others at church on Sundays; Friday is now the day of church and Sunday is a day of work. Read the rest of this entry »

Greetings from the Meads!! I am sipping some coffee this morning, but everything seems a bit off today. I opened the front door and saw a small enclosed space with a tree stump. Behind the low wall, a palm tree rose with its drooping branches. Where is the Rift?!?!? No birds were singing. The air was warm, much warmer than I am used to. The cool rains of Michigan have been left behind once again. This time Jana and I left alone, not to return to our comfortable Kijabe, but off on our new adventure. We are finally in Al Ain, UAE! Read the rest of this entry »