where we've been

This is a letter that Mark wrote to our Songhai team. We're sharing it on our Songhai ministry blog & I thought it'd be appropriate to share it here, as well. So many of you pray not only for our family but also for the ministry we do among the Songhai. Thank you.

Have you ever noticed that it’s hard to see growth, at least on a daily basis?  To just look at Isabelle I would say she pretty much looks the same as she did this time last year.  However, behind our kitchen door we keep a chart to measure her height.  It is when we compare today’s mark with last years that I see how much she has grown in a year. 

It’s hard to see growth in ministry too.  When you’re in the trenches day in and day out, it’s tough to pause and look back on where you’ve come from.  It’s tempting to think, “We’re where we were this time last year.” 

Now the problem is that we don’t have a spot behind a kitchen door to measure this kind of growth.   That’s why I’m writing this.  I hope to put a couple "markers on the door" of Songhai ministry to be able to see what God has done this past year. 

Here are just some of the highlights:

·      Two villages that had previously had NO believers now have a witness.  Read that sentence again.  Two villages that for their entire existence have not had anyone believe or anyone to be a light now have a Gospel witness! 

·      27 men and women prayed to receive Christ and were baptized!

·      The Gospel was clearly preached in 16 different villages.

·      Two men, both in their 50’s and from different villages share the same testimony: “I’ve been waiting 20 years for someone to tell me about Jesus.”

·      A new long-term unit joined our team.

·      We hosted 12 volunteer teams and 2 summer interns. 

·      We established a three-year partnership with Living Hope Baptist Church who will be sending 4 teams a year to work on “The Road to Karma.”

·      We re-upped our partnership with FBC Hurst as they continue to minister on the Mehanna Road.

·      We established a new partnership with Mount Olive Baptist Church.

·      We created the E2E ministry strategy and implemented it in all our work.

·      We trained and sent out our first short term national partners.

It is clear to see how powerfully God has moved this past year.  Thank you for your faithfulness and your obedience to engage, equip, and empower the Songhai!

Together, advancing the Kingdom of Christ in Songhai lands,

mark

twas the day after Christmas

Twas the day after Christmas & all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. 

You read that right. Not a creature is stirring in this house ... except for me. Am I up early? Oh no! Y'all, my family let me sleep til 9 am! So why is it so quiet? Well, Mark needed to run errands to get ready for the team that's coming on Friday, so he took the kids & his parents with him. So I have a quiet house all to myself! What ever shall I do? Post a blog!

I know y'all are just dying to hear about our Christmas & see pictures! Ha! But if you really were hoping to get a glimpse into the Phillips family Christmas, I've got about 25 pictures to share with you!

One of our many, many attempts for a good "kids in their Christmas jammies" picture. 

This was about as good as it was going to get.

But Luke said, "I'll show you good!"

Can y'all see "trouble" written all over that boy's face?!

I'm just glad his sister tolerates him!

After we tried our hand at a good picture, we read from our Advent calendar & then sang some Christmas songs. This boy loves to dance!

We got a little away from the normal Christmas songs & had to bust into "Boro Kulu." If anyone is familiar with this Zarma song, I bet you can guess which part Luke is dancing to here. 

Luke can dance & Izzy can prance.

Ending the night with a picture with Gaga & Papa ...

 ... & starting Christmas day with one, too!

We woke up around 7:45 & took our time getting ready (okay, so I took my time getting ready while the kids played). We gathered around for our last reading of our Advent calendar around 8:30 & then Mark read of Christ's birth from the Bible. We sang a few songs & then were just about ready to open presents when Ms Izzy Rue had a little meltdown. Gaga was smart to suggest that maybe she needed a little snack before we opened presents. A little piece of fudge was all she needed to get her back on track!

 This year was so much fun to have BOTH kids excited about presents. Izzy's been "ooh & ahh-ing" presents for the last 2 years but this was Luke's first year to really get into it.

 My little kitchen helper! Papa made her this apron!

 Luke was really excited about his new "backet-balls" (as he likes to call all balls)!

 More puzzles for our puzzle obsessed child!

 Izzy got a guitar from G&P when we did Christmas at their house in November & Luke loved it. So G&P gave him one, too! I think you can tell he was excited!

 Christmas is just so fun with our kids at their ages!

 Can you see the "oooh/ahhh" on Luke's face? It was so fun to watch him open his presents!

 Isabelle helping Gaga with her present.

 G&P gave Izzy & I a popcorn maker for our movie nights!!

 And this is why I love shopping for my kids year to year & not buying in advance (which is what we're sometimes forced to do). If you had asked me 18 months ago (when we were buying for our crate), if Luke would want a stuffed puppy dog for Christmas, I would've said, "Ummm ... I don't think so." His sister is not really into stuffed animals but Luke just loves them. He wants to sleep with 4 at a time! So it was so wonderful to be in the States before Christmas because we were able to buy exactly what we knew both kids would want this year. And that puppy dog was one of them! Luke just cuddled it & then laid on the floor with it.

 Time for stockings!

 Another of Luke's gifts from G&P was this Tow Mater wagon. Izzy pulled Luke, Luke pulled his puppy, & all the adults had turns pulling Luke!

 While I fixed breakfast, the kiddos got to play with their new toys while Papa & Mark cleaned up the mess of paper!

Christmas breakfast: sausage/egg breakfast casserole, homemade biscuits, sausage gravy & scrambled eggs for the kids.

After breakfast, we played some more with the kids & their new toys while G&P cleaned up from the meal. Both Mark & I got super sleepy around 11 am & so I zonked out for about an hour! The kids had a light snack for lunch & then went down for their naps. After they woke up, we Skyped cousin JJ, my Mimi & the rest of the SC fam (we had Skyped my sis, GB & Bebe on Christmas Eve). After the Skype call, I started in on Christmas dinner: pork roast, sweet potato casserole, Brussels sprouts (don't knock 'em til you try 'em), mac-n-cheese, 7 layer salad, & 3 choices of pies (pumpkin, pecan & coconut). It was a very Merry Christmas indeed!

Merry Christmas from the Phillips family!

how to decorate for Christmas in Africa

Here are some helpful tips for how to decorate for Christmas in Africa. Are you ready? Get your pencils & start taking notes ...

1. Buy tickets to America

2. Get on a plane & go to said country

3. Take a trip to Hobby Lobby & stock up on their 50% off sale

4. Pack all your goodies very carefully in a suitcase

5. Get on a plane & go back home

6. Decorate your house with your new decor! 

It's that simple! Okay, okay ... I'm half teasing. There really is not much to chose from here in terms of Christmas decor. Our first Christmas (2006) we had nothing except for a tiny tree my sister picked up at the $1 Spot at Target & what the Hepners sent us in a Christmas package. The next year we added a 4 foot tree, some ornaments & a few items that we had packed on our crate. In 2008, we had added nothing new except for a few ornaments we had mailed or brought here. In 2009, we had to leave Ayorou earlier than expected & spent our first Christmas ever (as a married couple) away from our home. Last year, we had that same 4 foot tree & just a few more ornaments.

But this year? Whew! What a great time to go to the States in November! We (or I) had a hay day at Wal-Mart, Target, Hobby Lobby, Home Goods, etc. buying new decor! We also got a new tree &, with a tree topper, we've almost doubled the size of our old one (about 7 ft tall)! In actuality, it's not much decor & we know that decorations do not enhance or define the meaning of Christmas at all. It's more for the traditional side of ourselves, the cultural side of ourselves, that likes a decorated home this time of the year. 

 

Because you know what? Nothing else in this country, even the weather, makes it feel one bit like Christmas! It's just another day to the 99.9% of the people that live around us. And so we do what we can inside our house to show that this season is one of the most important holidays of the year to celebrate.

 Our dining room. A few faux poinsettas from Wal-Mart, a half price table runner from Hobby Lobby & a little ribbon is all it takes!

 Our entryway table. I've had that garland & snowman for years! The framed print was made & given to me by the most talented Amy Richey. And the fabric/ribbon garland was what I referenced in the last post that took me 6 evenings to finish!

 I had to divide that garland into 3 strips because it turned out to be 10 feet long. I then had to find spaces to hang it all!

 One of my most favorite gifts this year!! I've always wanted one of these plates!! Thank you Amy!!

 Our buffet in our dining room with the last remaining cupcake from the parties! Some new garland (can you tell I love garland), gold ribbon & little holly berries. Plus, an awesome little Joseph, Mary & baby Jesus wood figurine made by my great friend Cheyenne!

 More garland & our Christmas village. We've received that Christmas village at a wedding shower. Actually, the wedding shower was Christmas themed! Oh & there are our wise men from another nativity scene. We like to place them across the room since they technically weren't there at the birth of Jesus! Yes, I know, we're dorks.

 Our tree & "mantle." And more garland!

 A little wreath I picked up at Target & then added some ribbon & berries to it.

And what's Christmas decor without decorated Christmas cookies?!

tis the season to part-ay!

The Phillips house has been partying like nobody's business. After we'd been home for a week, I hosted a Sip & See for a fellow colleague who just returned back to the country after having her little girl in Senegal. It was a fun gathering full of great food, fellowship & passing around the baby! Unfortunately, I didn't take a single picture nor did I get to hold the baby! Boo!! 

 

I had both kids by myself that day because Mark was away at an overnight retreat. I got Izzy to entertain herself with a movie while the party was going on but Luke wanted to be right by my side. When he did sneak away & go watch the movie with Izzy, I bounced on the opportunity to hold the baby. But it was like he had some sixth sense. He came running into the room yelling, "Mama! Mama!" & wanted me to hold him. Crazy boy!

Since there were no pictures, I'll just show you the invite I whipped up for the Sip & See & it'll have to suffice ...

Five days after the baby shower, we hosted a Christmas party for Mark's Boys' Bible study group. Every Wednesday he teaches a group of 11th & 12th grade MK's. He's been taking them through Tim Keller's "Gospel for Life" study for the past semester. They normally meet at someone else's home but we decided to do the party at our house. I fixed a slew of Christmas treats & some of the boys brought a few extra things. 

 

I made normal "Christmas-y" party type foods ... sausage balls, hot taco dip, little weenies, veggie tray, cake pops, peanut butter balls, etc, etc. Can you believe that some of these guys have never had nor ever heard of a sausage ball?!! What?!! Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the food but they all seemed to enjoy it because there was not much left! After they ate, they watched "Captain America" & then Mark gave them their "Man Up" t-shirts he had made for them. I'm not too sure what they're doing in this picture but I think it has something to do with the movie. Either that or they are letting their arm pits breathe.

Two days after the boys' Christmas party, we had our Songhai team Christmas party (us, Saleebys, Foxes, Cephas & Biba). We also invited our friends Ben & Melissa & our supervisor & his family. We had to do it in the morning/early afternoon so that the Foxes could come in from Boubon for it. So we started the morning with Christmas cookie decorating for the kiddos & ladies while the fellas played a game outside that Mark built called Washers.

After the kids had all they could stand of decorating cookies (which only lasted about 15 minutes), Melissa, Biba & I quickly finished the rest of them & then got the food out & on the table. We had a FEAST of food!! 

We called the fellas in from their game, gave thanks for our delicious food & dug in! It was so funny while we were eating because it was so quiet in the house. There were a few conversations here & there but most people were just stuffing their faces with all the delicious food & sweets!!

After we finished eating & were full to the gills, we all got comfy to watch "Elf." My idea had been to have the movie on & in the background for those that wanted to watch but leave it optional. However, doing it in the living room, having to turn down the lights & be quiet so that those who were watching it could hear, made it kind of impossible to do anything else. But it worked out okay because I don't know of anyone who doesn't like "Elf," right?

Most of the kiddos made it through half of the movie but Luke was out first. He had enough of sitting still & was ready to play. So he snuck back to Izzy's room & was having fun with all the toys to himself! Eventually, the rest of the kiddos followed suit & they ditched the movie for the toys.

That evening, we invited Ben & Melissa back over to help us finish off the leftovers & to play "Quelf." But before we ate, Melissa gave Izzy & Luke their Christmas presents that she had made.

Monster shoes!!! 

Will you please notice that Izzy's monster toes are painted?!

Raaaarrrr!!! 

The Phillips fam is not quite partied out yet. Gaga & Papa just arrived last night & we are gearing up for one last party on Christmas Eve Eve. Well, it's not really a party ... just more of family & friends eating Christmas pizza & playing games! Is that a party?