After seven months in the US, I was more than a little concerned about how my reentry to Uganda would be. I’d become pretty Americanized; I even learned that I could run errands at night (something I wouldn’t dream of doing in Uganda)!
Thankfully, my reentry has been incredibly smooth. Even while we were leaving the airport, everything felt very normal, even if I was sufficiently exhausted from little sleep on the airplane that I slept most of the way home over roads that have been ravaged by construction and rain.
I switched to driving on the left easily, though I am still confusing the turn signal and windshield wipers sometimes. I very much miss Waze. Google Maps knows many shortcuts, for which I’m grateful, but I cannot tell you how much I miss real-time reporting of traffic jams. That would have kept me from sitting on Jinja Road for over an hour on Thursday, in one spot, just because. One newspaper has even started a hashtag: #KlaTrafficFrustrations and it is so appropriate. We have always talked about the jam, but now it is beyond epic: I will visit a student in a couple days, and I would normally allow 25-30 minutes to get to his church. He told me to allow 90.
It’s a bit hard to adjust back to a cash-based society. Yes, many merchants accept debit cards, but there are still instances of debit card numbers being stolen, so I try to not make this a habit. It’s also much easier to budget when one is operating from cash.
Most of all, though, it is so good to see people, especially supervising my students. I love seeing them in the field and hearing about their ministries. At one parish, I happened to meet two of our graduates who have been posted there, and it was a delightful reunion.
Thank you for your prayers as I traveled back to Uganda, and please continue to pray for us as we wrap up the holidays and prepare for the students to return in January.
In our recent Advent letter (contact us to request a copy if you haven’t gotten one yet!), SAMS shared about the explosive growth of the Latin American mission movement. Since 1987, the number of Latino missionaries has expanded from 1,350 to over 27,000 serving in 160 countries!
By God’s grace, Anglicans have also engaged in this mission movement. We praise God for the roles SAMS missionaries have played in this growth through persistent prayer and discipleship. Your Society’s vision is to see the movement continue to grow and thrive.
To that end, SAMS has begun to partner with the Church Mission Society (CMS), a sister missionary society in the UK. Interestingly, CMS counts the famous abolitionist William Wilberforce among its founders back in 1799. SAMS founder Allen Gardiner sought a partnership with CMS in 1842 which did not come to fruition at the time, but in recent decades efforts have coalesced to work “better together.” In fact in the USA, the CMS-USA branch here merged into SAMS-USA. And across the pond the SAMS in the UK merged into CMS-UK. Consequently, today SAMS-USA is forging a partnership with CMS-UK’s Mission Development Manager for Latin America, Paul Tester. In Lima, Peru, Paul is leading the formation of a network among Anglicans to catalyze mission from Latin America to the rest of the world.
SAMS Founder Allen Gardiner
Above: Paul Tester with Veronica Calatayud (far right), part of the leadership of “El Buen Pastor” Anglican Church in Buenos Aires. The church supports people in global mission in many ways, including prayerfully and financially. Noemi Vallejos, from the same congregation, is the woman in the center who is shortly heading to Thailand to work in mission mobilization together with her husband Julio. We are seeking to join in with what God is already doing.
The vision CMS-UK and SAMS-USA share in the formation of this network is to encourage the development of the locally-led mission movement. This movement will continue to grow Anglican mission in, to, and from Latin America. The church is recognizing its prophetic call to mission beyond its own culture and context. We seek to fan the flame.
In September, CMS sent Paul to connect personally with our Society and the many SAMS missionaries at the New Wineskins for Global Mission Conference–appropriately themed “Better Together.” SAMS is excited about this partnership pressing further into our global vision encouraging the “whole church to share with the whole person the whole Gospel throughout the whole world.”
Persistent Prayer
Prayer has undergirded the explosive growth of the Latin American mission movement. In response to our Lord’s command in Matthew 9:38, consider setting a reminder on your phone for 9:38 AM or PM to ask God to send out even more Latin American missionaries to join other global workers sharing the love of His Son Jesus with all nations.
“Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Matthew 9:38 NIV
Map Above: SAMS and CMS both started in Great Britain, and have given their names to “sister societies” around the world as other places have developed their own missionary sending movements. Will God lead Latin Americans to form the next sister society?
SAMS-USA Board Vice Chairman John Macdonald details an exciting opportunity for those gifted and trained for theological education to serve God. SAMS is pleased to #CarryOnAdvent by sending missionaries who will equip leaders in the global church to carry on the Good News of Christ’s coming kingdom to all.
A Unique and Fulfilling Opportunity
In the midst of unprecedented renewal and revival, the Christian faith is spreading at a rapid pace in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. At the same time, the vast majority of Christian leaders, whether they be ordained or lay, have not received adequate theological education. SAMS-USA is engaged in a program to recruit faculty with post-graduate degrees to teach in select theological colleges around the world in order to help with this problem.
Do you have a post-graduate degree in theology, biblical studies, or ministry that is underutilized?
Are you on a teaching faculty and are considering where to spend your sabbatical?
Are you retired from teaching and are looking for a way to offer your knowledge and experience?
What is the need?
The need for good, orthodox theological education in the Global South is becoming more and more critical with each passing year. We can rejoice that renewal and revival is taking place in Africa, Latin America, Asia, and other places around the world. Yet the result is that Christian leadership, grounded in biblical orthodoxy, is acutely needed.
What is the answer?
How is it then that theological education can be improved in those areas of the world where the Church is growing at a rapid pace? The answer lies in recruiting and providing qualified faculty to teach in various Anglican theological institutions around the world. Some of these colleges are in the process of becoming accredited by their own country’s ministry or department of education, and they urgently need doctoral-level faculty in order to be accredited and given degree-granting status. There are other equipping institutions where teachers with master’s degrees are being requested.
Where is the need?
There is a need for theological educators in established schools, schools expanding programs, and newly formed schools across the globe.
What are the next steps?
I am interested. Through SAMS-USA (The Society of Anglican Missionaries and Senders), a program is being launched to recruit and prepare possible candidates for these overseas positions whether it be for one year, two years, or longer. While the candidate would need to raise support for their transportation, monthly stipend, and benefits (including health insurance and retirement plans through SAMS), the expectation is that the host institution would provide housing and other amenities thus reducing the amount of financial support needed. The length of service is based on the candidate’s availability, whether it be for a single term or for one or two years—or more. After attending a Crossroads Conference sponsored by SAMS-USA and meeting the requirements for missionary service, the candidate and spouse (if applicable) will receive support-raising preparation, two weeks of pre-field orientation and other necessary training that will all be provided by SAMS-USA.
Is God calling you?
For further information, please contact: Denise Cox, Associate Director DeniseCox@sams-usa.org (724)266-0669 www.sams-usa.org OR The Rev. Canon Dr. John A. Macdonald Vice Chair, SAMS-USA Associate Professor Emeritus of Mission and Evangelism Trinity School for Ministry, Ambridge, PA 15003 JohnMacdonald@sams-usa.org
It’s hard to escape the fact that December, at least in the US and the West, is a time of giving. We exchange gifts. Stores ask for donations to spread the cheer. We give and receive Christmas cards as well as a multitude of end-of-year letters from NGO’s and people like me. 😉
I think it’s good to have a season of giving especially when our society continues to convince us that we need things that our predecessors happily lived without. But I’m reminded that as God Himself said in His Word, the greatest gift to give is love.
As I read over its definition in 1 Corinthians 13 for this morning’s Bible Study, I was sobered as I am every time I read this passage. It’s not just the fact that I see a lack of these qualities in my own heart and life, but other spiritual merits including generosity, are basically canceled without love at the core. I think I can sometimes deceive myself that my spiritual gifts, faith, or generosity can override a bit of impatience of irritability, especially toward those who offer the same. Of course, this is not so, according to the One with the right to judge.
Thank God He is not just a righteous Judge, but also merciful. He Himself is our source of love, so we can confess our waywardness and selfishness and humbly ask for His love to replace our less-than efforts.
I’m thankful, too, that our God is constantly calling us to His love and in His divine wisdom and power can so arrange that today’s lesson in Spirituality of Fundraising would reinforce the call to love as first and foremost. I’ll end with a quote on one of four ways to commit to wholeheartedness. Perhaps it will encourage you as it has me to be rich in love, both giving and receiving.
Most of us want to give and receive love and to experience joy and peace. We want to get along with people and to be patient and generous. We hope to have adventure, quality relationships, and lots of laughter in our lives. None of these things can be purchased. Once we have created a personal picture of what wholeheartedness means for us, we can commit to that vision. When we stray from our vision, we can return to God as the place of our security and the source of love that will fill our heart.
Well we have officially finished our time of deputation in the States and are now back home in Belize. It has been both wonderful and exhausting. We had the chance to visit so many different family members, see old friends, and visit churches across the country as we crisscrossed the States. I think I was very ready to come to the U.S. when we arrived in June. After Austin was born I became very aware of how far away family live and I was really looking forward to spending some quality time together while we were on deputation. It really was amazing to get to stay with so many different family members and friends. I think Austin did a fantastic job meeting new people! Thank you to all of you who prayed for us in our travels. I think Austin could either have ended up extra clingy and fussy with so much time in the car (and getting passed to countless new people), or he could have ended up being a very relaxed and happy baby—he’s the latter. God has blessed us with a happy, chill, and social baby. While he still is not a fan of his car seat, he did an amazing job with a constantly changing routine. We will truly miss everyone we got to see in the States and we can’t wait until the next time we meet again!
On the flip side though, we were very ready to go home to Belize. Although we posted so many fun pictures of places we’d gotten to visit, family days, or time with friends, what we couldn’t share were the thousands of miles on the road driving (over 17,000 miles), the hotel rooms, living out of suitcases, lugging around a computer to work from each place we stopped at … it was exhausting. We made sure to make time for family outings and fun breaks (the majority of our pictures), but we were also working a lot (the majority of our time). I think deputation (our “Home Ministry Assignment” stateside) was a good chance to take a step back from ministry on the ground (in our case Belize), to spend time in our home culture, and get a better perspective on our ministry. When we left Belize in June, I think both David and I were pretty burned out and our time in the States was a good refreshment and encouragement that prepared us ready and excited to return to ministry in Belize.
So now we’re back and there is this sort of a “Now What?” feeling. Our time in the States was the longest I’ve ever been away from home traveling. And then you add an infant to the equation to get 5 ½ months of ever changing routines and locations. To finally be in one place—our place—for a large chunk of time is a strange adjustment. Not only am I readjusting to my house, but I’m figuring out what our life will look like here with Austin. We left Belize when he was 2 ½ months old, so we still hadn’t completely figured out a routine with him. Now we’re back and he has a nap schedule, he’s sleeping in his nursery for the first time upstairs (while we sleep downstairs), I’ve made him lots of baby food (that he currently hates) that I’m storing in the freezer, and I’m figuring out what my own schedule looks like (in regards to music ministry) with Austin. As a whole there is just a lot to adjust to. It’s exciting to finally be able to really see what our lives will look like here as a family!
But there is also a lot to adjust to just by being back in Belize. I don’t think I had really anticipated culture shock coming back; after all, this is where I live. I figured we would step back in our house and it would finally feel like I had returned home after months of travel. It really surprised me that this was not the case. Belize (and even my house) feel both very familiar and incredibly foreign. I think people often forget that for missionaries, sometimes nowhere really feels like home … at least at times. My “home” is here in Belize (my house, life, family, work) and my “home” is also in the States (my culture, extended family, close friends). This means that both—and neither—are “home.” When you’re in one, part of you always misses the other. And while I wouldn’t trade it for the world (I love being a missionary!), I’m acutely aware of that particular feeling, both in the States and now that we’re back in Belize. I think it’s always there in the background, but it always surprises me when it suddenly becomes obvious again. It’ll become an afterthought again here in a few weeks, but until then I get to ponder some of the strange things that come with being a missionary.
I’ve finished unpacking (which is pretty good for me since I normally just continue living out of the suitcases until they naturally empty … oops), and now we start preparing for Christmas. And what better way to prepare for Christmas than to really lean into Advent? We decided to make the Daily Office the center of our Advent as a family. While David and I have done the Daily Office together often since getting married, we’ve also found that our schedules differ enough that lots of times we just do it alone. But we’ve decided that we want that specific time of devotion to be a daily family routine. David is even teaching me how to chant the service! (I’ll get back to you on how that goes … hehe).
David has jumped right back into ministry here as well: St. Andrew’s Day and the First Sunday in Advent fell the next day after we got back. It was pretty special to be home for that Sunday, and David loved getting to celebrate the Eucharist again after months of being away! So, while on one hand we have hit the ground running, on the other we are just now getting to discover our life here as a family.
I’m sure there will be plenty more to tell you all here pretty soon, after all this is one of the busiest times in any church (and there are sure to be interesting shenanigans to come with Austin), and we have some serious financial needs looming now that we have returned from deputation. But for now I’ll leave you with this “short” update. I just wanted to let you guys know, “We’re back!” and to thank you again for all of your support, especially since we were away for so long. Please continue to keep us in your prayers and we’ll keep you in ours! Happy Advent!
