Dear family and friends,

Greetings from Congo, Africa!! We have been here for almost three weeks now, and I am so happy to be here. It has been a big change to live in a different culture for the first time, but God has been helping me to adjust really well. There is no other place I would rather be than right where I know He wants me to be!

We are staying about 20 kilometers from the capital (Brazzaville) in a village called Ignie. Even though it is a village, it is more like a small city since there are about ten thousand people that live here. Thankfully we are not too close to the main road, but there is still a lot of noise here sometimes. But we are thankful that God has provided a temporary place for us to stay while we are looking for land in the country.

Above is the house we are renting. Below is our neighborhood.

Learning French

Before I came to Africa, I studied French for my last two years in high school. But I still have a lot to learn! I am thankful that God is helping me to keep trying to talk with people here. The church here had evangelistic meetings recently, which I attended twice. It was a really good opportunity to practice talking to people. There are a lot of young people here, and it is not uncommon for me to be surrounded with them! They are so patient with my limited French, and bit by bit I am learning to speak more. Last Sabbath after lunch, I started talking to one of the girls who is about my age. She was really nice. Soon her sisters came over, and we pulled up chairs and started talking. God helped me to think of a good idea to keep the conversation on a Sabbath-appropriate topic. I got out my Bible so they coulnd practice reading in English, and they seemed to really enjoy that. I corrected their pronunciation sometimes, but they all did really well. Even Elder Ezekiel wanted to try. I had a really nice time! I think having a language barrier is a blessing, even though it makes it hard to communicate sometimes. That way, we both have a way we can help each other, and something we can talk about and connect on. I can help them with English, and they can help me with French!

Meanwhile, my cousin Gideon (who is thirteen) was surrounded by a bunch of boys, and he was teaching them a French song, and learning French too. He really enjoyed himself too. I am praying that we can be a blessing to the young people here! 

Water Issues

The water system at this house is a lot different than I am used to. Instead of a well or a pipe hooked up to city water, we have a large tank beside our house that is mostly below ground-level. In order to have running water, we are dependent on electricity to pump it up. Soon after we got here, we purchased about 8,000 liters, which was pumped into our tank from a water truck. Then we could have running water . . . unless the electricity went off, which it does fairly often!! One day the electricity was off all day from breakfast time, except for a little while around lunchtime. In addition, most of our yellow jugs of water were used up. We tried to use only a little water for our Friday evening showers. At evening worship, we were praying for the electricity to come on. We had decided to wait to get more water until we saw if the electricity came back on. It was already after sundown, and Uncle Jonathan was still not back from his trip to Brazzaville. Things had not gone as planned for him either, but we were still trusting God to take care of our needs. While we were still having worship, Uncle Jonathan returned. We went to bed with the electricity still not on. But by the next morning, the electricity was on!! I was so happy! I knew God could have helped it come on earlier, but I am thankful that He gave us opportunity to trust that "bread shall be given him; his water shall be sure." (Isaiah 33:16) God knows how to take care of His children.

On Monday last week, our water tank got low enough that the water pipe couldn't reach it easily. Well, just call the water truck, right? Yes, but what if the water truck doesn't come? What if the pump at the well where he gets the water is broken? We started using a bucket to draw water out of the tank to fill our yellow jugs. We drew water for laundry, for washing hands, for dishes, and for cooking. Even though it was a bit dirty, we just put bleach in it for washing dishes. We were thankful that we still had water to use. But after several days our tank had gotten so low that we could only draw about half a bucket at a time. That Friday morning, I was studying the part of the Lord's Prayer where it says, "Give us this day our daily bread." (Matthew 6:11) I was thinking about how God cares about our physical needs, including our water, and I knew He would take care of us. That morning, we decided to buy some water to fill our yellow jugs and be sure to have enough for the weekend. We were still trusting God to provide for our needs. Then, Friday afternoon, guess what came? The water truck!! It was so exciting to see the water gushing into our tank! Now we had plenty of water! We could take real showers, and wash our hands and dishes from the faucets! It was a very special blessing, and encouraged me a lot!

Looking for Land

One of the main reasons that we moved here as missionaries is to start a print shop to print literature for people. The literacy rate is high here, but there is hardly any literature work being done. Many church members don't have standard Spirit of Prophecy books, and many people don't have access to truth through gospel tracts. By God's grace, we will help to change that. We are looking for a piece of land in the country where we can build a house and a print shop and have space for agriculture as well. We know that God has just the right piece of land in mind, and we would appreciate your prayers as we continue searching.

In the meantime, God is reminding me how important household work is. In the first couple weeks, a lot of our time during the day was spent washing clothes by hand, sorting dirty beans, preparing meals, watching baby Malachi, and scrubbing dishes (sometimes without running water). But even though it may not feel like a grand mission work, I know that faithfully doing everyday duties is important to God! It is encouraging how much He values cheerful service, even in household chores. I am reminded of the quote, "The humble tasks before us are to be taken up by someone; and those who do them should feel that they are doing a necessary and honorable work, and that in their mission, humble though it may be, they are doing the work of God just as surely as was Gabriel when sent to the prophets. . . . Conformity to the will of God makes any work honorable that must be done." (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, p. 79)

A Special Gift from God

For those of you reading this far, I have one more story! Last week on Tuesday, I was sick with a sore throat and fever. Thankfully, it wasn't malaria, and by Wednesday, I was feeling somewhat better. I was praying that morning about several things, including that God would help the sun to come out. I had not seen the sun for about a week, since it is the cold season right now. But that morning, as we were getting ready for breakfast, I saw some light shining on the propane stove. I looked out the window, and there was the beautiful sun, shining its best through the polluted sky. I just think this is a direct answer to prayer!! How kind of my heavenly Father to care about something that seems rather small, but to me it meant a lot. I know how important the sun is for our health, and I know that God cares about that too. What a wonderful God! It made me want to do my laundry, so I got lots of it hanging out in the sunshine. Some of us ate lunch on the front porch in the sun too. I felt so good that we were getting all these benefits from the sunshine. The sun shone pretty much all day, but the day before and the day after, I didn't see it shine at all. That one day, God gave me a special token that He cared for me! I love Him so much!! 

Thank you for all your prayers and support as we continue to serve God here in Congo! Being a witness for Jesus is the best job in the world, and gives me so much satisfaction, even amid inconveniences. He is faithful, and I am looking forward to seeing how He will continue to use us here.

In His service,

Luella Dietrich