Weils in Mozambique

January update

2012-01-22T18:18:00.000-08:00

22 January 2012

This past week Larry and I were stuck at home along with many other Western Washington people as the worst winter storm in years blasted through. We received about 6 inches of snow with lots of cold air and it was nice to be safe and warm inside our home.

We were so fortunate that we did not have to be on the road last week and were able to travel to Seattle on Saturday to meet a new family interested in missions overseas.

Katie, Alisa, Mark, Libby, Nathan, Paul, Susan, Larry

We had a wonderful Christmas and New Years with my family in Canada. We traveled to British Columbia on Christmas Eve and spent time with both my brothers. My father flew over from Ontario and we did all kinds of fun family things together – Christmas brunch with the traditional cinnamon roll wreath, going to Stanley Park to see the amazing lights, an Indian meal out and we even watched a movie together. It was great to be together. We even traveled to see more family in Chilliwack and visited my 5^th grade teacher (from India).

We traveled back to Sequim on January 2^nd and have been keeping busy here. If you peek in our front window in the mornings you will see Larry and I “Walking for Weight loss and so much more.” Yes, we have officially put on the furlough obligatory bulge and need to walk it off. We are hoping to get back in shape before we head back to Mozambique.

Miss Salmon, Susan's 5th grade teacher in India

We have been inviting friends over for a meal and it has been great to reconnect. Our Sundays are scheduled at various churches and we have enjoyed sharing about the ministries in Mozambique. We are blessed to have such faithful supporters in prayer and finances.

We shared at local churches the past two weeks in Sequim. The last weekend in January, we will be traveling back to Vancouver, B.C. to represent One Mission Society at Mission Fest. We look forward to being with other OMS missionaries. Pray that the many people who visit the different mission booths will be encouraged to serve the Lord in missions.

As soon as we return to Sequim, we will do the laundry and pack the bags for warmer weather and head to Florida. Yea!! We will be participating in the camp meetings at Avon Park, Florida. That will end on the 12^th and we will take a few days of vacation before we head back to Sequim.

We appreciate your prayers as we prepare for all these meetings at the various churches. We pray that we will be able to share our hearts effectively and encourage those who have been supporting the ministries in Mozambique.

God Bless,

Larry & Susan

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-21T20:30:00.000-08:00

December 21, 2011

Susan, Larry, cousin Susie, Aunt Donna, Kathy (Larry's sister)

Since our last entry we have had quite a schedule. We spent the month of November traveling and seeing many friends and family. It was a busy, but wonderful time. We are so enjoying our beautiful car and are so thankful for a special car dealer friend who made us a deal we could not refuse.

Larry, cousin Shannon, Aunt Clara, Uncle Vic, Jeff

Our travels first took us to eastern Washington where we spent time with Larry’s sister and brother-in-law, Kathy and Dale. Their exciting news shortly after we left was that they became grandparents for the first time. They are looking forward to meeting their new granddaughter at Christmas. During our time in eastern WA we visited with others from Larry’s family – two aunts, an uncle, and cousins, some we haven’t seen in years. We took a short trip to Idaho to see Larry’s step-father. During this time we spoke at a church that Larry’s family attended when he was young and spent time with special friends.

Larry and Walter (Larry's step-father)

On the way back to the coast, we were able to visit another cousin of Larry’s who has been going through treatment for cancer. We had a good time of fellowship and were glad to see how God is healing her. We enjoyed spending a couple of nights with friends before traveling up to visit my roommate from university days.

Tina and Susan

People have always thought Tina and I were sisters and even after being apart for many years, we seem to continue to look like each other. We had a good time catching up with Tina and husband Dan before traveling up to British Columbia to visit the Canadian side of the family.

We spent a night with my brother Mark and his family in Richmond before heading to Chilliwack for a big family get together to celebrate an aunt’s birthday. Everyone was there except for one of my cousins and her family. It is amazing how much all the cousins’ kids have grown. We worshiped at my home church and we will share about the work in Mozambique in April.

Reading to Drew and Isaiah (niece Kari's kids)

With Drew, Isaiah and Kate (niece Kari's kids)

We made a quick trip back to Sequim to do laundry and regroup for the next trip which was to Oregon. This time we spent time with Larry’s brother Jim and his wife Diane. We celebrated Thanksgiving with a niece and her family and a nephew along with Jim and Diane. It was delicious food and wonderful company. While we were in Oregon we took a trip to Florence a coastal town and met with a dear friend who has been in Mozambique twice working on the library at CAM. We picked up several boxes of books for CAM. We spent time meeting with friends in the area and ended our time speaking at a supporting church in Portland.

With Nancy Hesch in Florence, OR

Enjoying the view on the Oregon Coast

We were so glad to get back to Sequim to a slower schedule with time to be “normal” for a bit. We have spent the last couple of weeks getting our Christmas letter out to family and friends, baking, decorating the tree and having friends over for meals. We have been a part of our home church worship team and enjoyed attending a lovely Christmas program as well as a church party.

Susan sharing at the Ladies' Christmas Tea

Larry sharing at Rotary Club

I was invited to be the speaker at the ladies’ Christmas tea. The topic was God’s Ultimate Gift. Larry was the guest speaker at his old Rotary Club last week. He enjoyed connecting with friends and meeting some new ones.

Our Christmas Tree in Sequim

We are looking forward to spending time with family in British Columbia, Canada. We will travel up on Christmas Eve and Susan’s father will fly from Ontario on the 26^th to spend time with the family.

We thank the Lord for safe travels and relatively good health. We look forward to the New Year and all the Lord is going to do. We are amazed and blessed by all that God is doing in our lives. Thank you for your prayers and friendship. We serve a great God.

Merry Christmas!

Larry & Susan

Finaly arrived in Sequim, WA

2011-11-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

November 5, 2011

Our first Sequim Sunrise

After spending two weeks in Ontario and two weeks in Indiana, we have finally reached Sequim, WA, our home for the next six months. We will be at different churches during the weekends, but during the week we will be staying in our beautiful house in Sequim. We so appreciate Bill and Nancy, friends and supporters of ours who are allowing us to stay here. Our friends at Sequim Bible Church filled our pantry with all kinds of food and gave us gift certificates to the local grocery stores to buy other items we will need. Thanks so much to all of you. We are feeling spoiled.

Deer in our yard

front of our home in Sequim

Mike, Mayla, Sarah, Simon & Gabriel Thiessen

We need to back up and let you know what we have been up to since the last blog. Of course, we had a restful time at the mansion in Ontario. On our way back to Susan’s father’s place, we took a detour to visit Mike and Sarah Thiessen and to get caught up with what’s been happening in their lives. They were the family that was in Mozambique for 9 months when their 2 ½ year old son Gabriel was diagnosed with cancer and they had to return to Canada. We are glad to report that Gabriel (now five years old) has been cancer free and is doing well. Mike is the pastor of a growing church and though they miss Mozambique, they are settling into life in Canada. It was very special to see them.

Laura & Steve Kuhn & Mikayla

One of the highlights of being back in the U.S. and Canada are all the people we get to see. A special treat is seeing people that were missionaries in Mozambique. Steve and Laura Kuhn were in Mozambique for a year and we were able to attend the dedication of their daughter Mikayla.

We were able to spend a week with Susan’s father and wife Anne, and enjoyed some great meals together which included Thanksgiving with Anne’s family. It was delicious turkey and ham with all the traditional trimmings.

We left Ontario and flew to Indiana and were there for debriefing interviews with staff at OMS headquarters and also had our medical check-ups. I guess they need to make sure that we are mentally and physically able to continue on. We passed!!

Glenn (Tom) & Kris Berryman

While we were in Indiana we had dinner with Glenn and Kris Berryman, former missionaries in Mozambique. We even were able to drive to Kentucky and spend a wonderful weekend with three couples who were missionaries in Mozambique. One of those couples was Don and Aleta Hulsey who are on their home assignment time for a year. We heard Don and Aleta share at the church we attended that Sunday. It was a wonderful weekend. We also spent time with Becca (Pullin) who had served in Mozambique and her husband, Joey. They are funding to be missionaries in Mexico.

Larry & Susan, Martin & Susan Brooks, Kevin & Mindy Beck, Aleta & Don Hulsey

During our time in Greenwood, Larry spent many, many hours working on our DVD of the ministries in Mozambique. We shared in chapel at headquarters and then were featured at a mission’s conference in Terre Haute.

Now we are car shopping and getting settled into life here. We were busy last weekend at a mission’s conference at a supporting church in Port Angeles. It was close enough to us that we could drive there from our home.

We leave for three weeks this Thursday (Nov 10th) to Eastern Washington and Idaho where we'll visit Larry's Sister, Kathy and Dale Countryman, and his step-father in Coeur d'Alene, ID. We'll be sharing in Lamont, WA on the 13th in Larry's childhood home church. The next weekend we will be in Chilliwack, BC and we will be visiting family there and heading to Salem, OR for American Thanksgiving.

Now we are scheduling meetings and getting involved in different church activities. We need your prayers as we continue to travel and present the ministries in Mozambique. Pray for our team back in Mozambique as they continue to minister in Mozambique.

At a Wayside Chapel in Canada

in Him,
Larry & Susan

Susan with her Dad, Nathan and Anne

Larry with a couple furry friends..getting our "cat fix"

Larry reading story to Mayla Thiessen

Larry and Sarah Thiessen horseback riding

Arrived in Canada

2011-09-30T11:36:00.000-07:00

30 September 2011

It is a blustery, rainy day and we are in a “cottage” surrounded by a forest on the shore of Lake Huron in Canada. Actually, the cottage is a mansion with five bedrooms, three bathrooms and a huge A-frame living area. Just beautiful. The perfect place to rest and refresh ourselves.

at the "Cottage" on the Bruce Peninsula, ON, Canada

It is already a month since our last blog update and we are miles away from Mozambique, resting and regaining energy as we prepare for our home assignment in Canada and the U.S. We left Mozambique on the 25^th of September with two bags and four carry-on bags. We had the best trip ever with all our flights on time and connections smooth. Our luggage arrived safely and the customs agents didn’t blink an eye at our fully stamped passports. Susan’s father was at the airport to pick us up and after one night at his place, we were on our way north to spend five days at the cottage for some R & R.

the completed bathroom block at CAM school

Now backing up a bit, we had an incredibly busy September. Every day we were able to see more and more completed at the new CAM and the students and teachers settling in. The transportation to the school changed a bit and now we have two mini-busses and one large bus that pick up the students and teachers and bring them to school and take them home.

CAM Dedication: flag presentation by CAM students

A highlight at CAM a week before we left was the 15^th year anniversary and dedication of CAM. We were privileged to have Claude and Marilynn Meyers, the founders of CAM, join us as the special guests and speaker for the day. What a blessing to hear the history of CAM and how God provided in miraculous ways right from the beginning when CAM was just a dream. Now CAM has gone through another amazing event of moving to a new location. God blessed us with Melvin Kelly who was our construction engineer and his wonderful crew of Mozambican workers who worked to finish the school in record time. Teachers, students, and all the construction crew worked so hard to get everything ready for school to open. We know God has great plans for CAM and for the families it is touching and will touch in the future.

L/R: Melvin Kelly, Gary & Diane Gray, Larry, Marilynn and Claude Meyers

We continued to work alongside of Gary and Diane Gray, preparing them for our departure. We are so thankful to the Lord for their willingness to take our spots and be a part of the OMS team in Mozambique. We were able to leave knowing that things would be in good hands.

Packing and having to say goodbye to Felix

It was good to finally get things organized in our own house. We moved the third week in July, but had boxes that still needed to be unpacked in September. Slowly but surely we were able to get most everything unpacked or stored in one of the rooms in our house. We even got some things hung on the walls too. Just as we were getting settled in our house, we then had to get things packed to take to the States. What to take, what to give away and what to leave behind was filling our minds as we packed to leave.

OMS team farewell dinner for us

We look forward to our time in the U.S. and Canada. We are getting our schedule organized and so far we will be in Canada until October 12^th when we head to OMS headquarters in Indiana. We have meetings and physicals scheduled in the first week. The weekend of October 21^st – 23^rd we will be a part of the mission’s conference at World Gospel Church. We fly to Washington State on the 25^th and will spend the next week settling in our home in Sequim and finding a car.

We are working on our speaking schedule and when we have things firmed up we will post the dates on our blog. Thanks for your prayers. We hope to see as many of you as possible. Our email will remain the same so you can contact us through that.

God bless,

Larry & Susan

CAM is moved and running

2011-08-28T21:08:00.000-07:00

29 August 2011

I promised to update our blog after we moved and I never imagined that it would be such a busy time of moving and how long it would take to really get settled.

Moving into our new duplex apartment on the OMS Compound

More of moving in

Unpacking the 92 boxes of A Beka curriculum

We moved to our new home on the mission campus the third weekend of July. We had lots of help and were able to get everything moved here in three days. We did have one more load at the house that we got the next week, but we were living out here by the end of July. Just as we started loading up our personal things, Larry received a call from the Port of Maputo letting us know our CAM textbooks had arrived and we needed to pick them up. It was an answer to prayer to have the books before school started, however, the timing was not the best. We were able to hire a truck which brought the books out to the new site, thus saving us the effort of moving them twice.

1st of 3 large containers to move the school out

The new school wasn’t quite ready for us to move on Monday, August 1^st, but on Tuesday the 2^nd the big moving truck arrived at old CAM and the packing began. What a job. We were so thankful that we had hired a moving company to help. If we had done it ourselves, we would still be moving things, one truck load at a time. All the boxes and equipment came through the move in good shape. The only bad thing that happened was that the truck backed into the new fence and totally knocked out a post. The moving company took full responsibility and discounted the price to pay for the repair of the fence.

The move took two very long and busy days. The teachers and school workers were on hand to help with the unloading. We directed the moving men where to unload the things. On Thursday and Friday we started to get the classrooms organized and things put in place. What a job!!! We were so fortunate to have Gary and Diane Gray here to help through the entire process. They have been such a great blessing to us. We thank the Lord that they are here to fill in for us while we are away for our home assignment.

Teacher Orientation August 8th

The next week was the teacher’s orientation. It was a combination of training and continuing to get the rooms ready. We had already delayed school for 7 days and we didn’t want to delay it again. It was lovely to see the classrooms take shape and the teachers did a great job of decorating them.

The bathrooms are still in process of completion. There are still things to finish off, but what is finished looks great. For the first week of classes we were able to use some of the bathrooms. I think everything will be finished by this week.

Golden with his third grade class

First day...rather rainy...kids gathering at the rondovel

The first day of classes for the secondary students was the coldest and wettest day I had ever experienced in Mozambique. The busses arrived in time, but we had to hurry the students to their classrooms to keep them out of the rain. The next day when the elementary joined in, it was a little better, but still windy and cold. But in spite of the rain, the children were happy to see each other and the new school, but probably not as happy to have to get busy and study again.

Cynthia with her second grade class

We praise the Lord for sufficient staff for the year. We are starting with 66 students and believe that it will grow in numbers once people realize that we are here. We still have not advertised, because we wanted to make sure that we were able to make the move and that everything would be ready in time.

The busses are working out and it is so convenient for the students and teachers to have a ride to school now. There are still some bugs to work out, but we praise the Lord for a positive beginning to our 16^th year of CAM.

Last weekend was our annual Field Council meetings where the team gather and plan for the next year and beyond in all the ministries. Although we were all very tired, the weekend was productive and we PTL for all He has done this past year and we look forward to what the next year will bring.

OMS Mozambique Team during Field Council meetings: August 2011

We Are Moving...

2011-07-15T08:38:00.000-07:00

15 July 2011

Boxes, boxes everywhere!!

CAM Textbooks packed for moving

More Textbooks to move

New CAM Entrance. Doors still to come.

We are moving!! Yes, you already knew that the school was moving and we are in the final stages of the construction of the new school. It is wonderful to see the classrooms and offices developing, and now the bathroom block is up. The final things are being added to the classrooms. The ceiling tiles are next to be installed and the windows and doors are being fitted. There is still one more wall to paint in some of the classrooms, because we were waiting for the windows and doors to be installed so we wouldn’t have to paint it twice. Melvin Kelly, our construction engineer, has been an amazing help and has kept all the workers encouraged and moving towards the goal of completion.

hanging the false ceiling and lights in the office

As soon as the rooms are secure, we can start moving the old school to the new school, and that is where the boxes come in. The teachers at CAM have been busy packing up all the textbooks, teaching supplies and the entire library into boxes. They have been very good to label them so I can find books when I need to. The old school is full of boxes. The chalk boards, white boards and bulletin boards have been removed from the walls and this week they are working on the computer lab. What a lot of cords and things to pack up. We are getting down to the wire.

The offices need floor tile and the ceiling tile installed and we are waiting on the doors and windows to be installed so the rooms will be secure enough to move the things in.

Bathroom Block under construction

About two weeks ago we made the decision to delay school for an addition 10 days to allow the bathroom block to be completed. We can’t run a school without bathrooms. That has been a good decision and it has given us more time to get things ready.

Larry repairing the door at our new home

When I am at school, all I see are boxes and bare walls. Guess what? We are also moving from our house to a duplex on the new property. Our new home is a bit smaller, but we have been able to choose colors to paint the walls and watch the place take shape. The floor tiles have been installed. We are waiting on the ceiling tiles and the bathroom to be completed and then we can start moving. Our house now is a disaster with boxes in every room and the hallway. It is a good time for us to sort through things to give away, throw away or keep. You can imagine that it is stressful for us to say the least, but we are thankful for God’s faithfulness to us throughout this amazing journey. Thank you for your prayers.

Gary & Diane Gray...our replacements during furlough. YEA!

We thank the Lord that Gary and Diane Gray arrived on July 5^th. They are settling into their home on the compound and are spending time with us learning the ropes. We are so thankful that they will be here to take over our responsibilities when we are on home assignment starting this September. Pray for a smooth transition for them. Pray, also, that we will have sufficient teachers and students to support the school for this year.

The next blog will be an update after the move.

CAM events: CAM Picnic, Musical and Graduation 2011

2011-06-17T22:04:00.000-07:00

18 June, 2011

It has been so busy these last few weeks we haven’t gotten our blog updated. I wrote some news right after the CAM picnic, but we just didn’t have enough time to get the photos attached and up. So we will add to the update that we already have.

CAM Graduates 2011

May 30th was the graduation ceremony for our seven grads. It was lovely to celebrate with the seniors and hear them share about their time at CAM and what they were hoping for the future. Each grad had a special part in the program and some of the parents and teachers had a part. It is hard to believe that we won’t see them at school next year.

CAM Graduation Dinner

The graduation dinner was held on Wednesday, June 1st, Larry’s birthday. We celebrated with the grads and their families. It was a time to reminisce and rejoice.

Bathroom block under construction

A big praise is that we got our building permit! Construction is well on the way now for the bathroom block. It looks great. The play field has been leveled and now we are waiting for the electrical to be put in before the drop ceilings can be installed. The biggest concern is to find affordable and safe busses to transport the students from town to the new school site.

At CAM we have chapel every Friday. It is a time to sing, pray and hear how the Lord is working in the lives of different people. Sometimes the different classes take charge of the chapel programs. This past Friday the 4th – 6th grade choir presented a musical called “Camp Wallaballa.” It is about a group of kids on their way to a camp and their bus breaks down and they have to wait for someone to come and fix the bus. In the meantime, they sing all these great songs about not being afraid because God is with them and they share all these great promises from the Bible and sing about standing on God’s promises. It was beautiful. I invited the parents to come and see their performance and there were tears in their eyes as well as in mine. The kids did such a great job.

BBQs smelled so good

CAM Picnic...lots of food

The annual CAM picnic was May 21st. We have always had it at the Boa Nova property. This year is was at the same place, but now it is more significant because it is our new school site. We set up six BBQs and several tables for the extra food to share. We ended up with almost 140 people – a record crowd. After lunch the kids played games for prizes and we gave tours to the parents of the new site. It is so great to see all the new families. We sense their support and encouragement as we are in the middle of this incredible project.

CAM Kids playing games at the picnic

Much to pray for

2011-05-14T21:31:00.000-07:00

15 May 2011

CAM 2011 Seniors with us at the park taking their grad pictures

It has been awhile since we updated our blog. We have been so busy since Easter time and have not had the opportunity to write. On May 4^th we took all seven seniors to a beautiful park in town and took their grad photos. I had ironed all the grad gowns so they could have a photo wearing their gown and cap. While I ironed I spent time praying over each of the seniors and asked the Lord to lead and guide them in the next chapter of life. Each senior had several changes of clothes and we had a great time taking the photos. We asked some friends to come and help with the photos. It would have taken us hours otherwise. Here is a photo with us and the grads. Aren’t they a great looking bunch?!

Dynamic Women Team with Aimee Howarth in Kruger Park

OMS has a fairly new ministry called Dynamic Women. They encourage women to sign up for trips to the various countries where OMS has work so they can see the work and spend time with the people involved in the various ministries. Our Mozambique team was able to host a group of six women from the U.S. We actually knew four of the six and one of them was one of our supporters from Sequim, WA. It was a blessing to have Gail Watson come and visit us and see the different things we are involved in here. Our colleague, Aimee was in charge of the team, but Larry was able to help drive the ladies through Kruger Park. They saw lots of animals and actually saw the “Big Five” all in one day. (Lion, leopard, rhino, cape buffalo, and elephant)

We only have 13 days left of school. Graduation is on Monday, May 30^th. The last day of classes is June 1^st and we have our clean up day and awards assembly on June 2^nd. The days are flying by and we can hardly keep up with all the activities.

Next Saturday is our school picnic which is traditionally held where we are building the new school. We wanted to get more of the classrooms ready so the parents can get a good view of what the school is going to be like when they are there for the picnic. We scheduled another work day on the 14^th and this time we had six students and six staff from school come and help. We were able to prime and paint three large rooms and prime two other rooms. The work goes quickly when there are many hands to help. We are very tired and sore, but happy to see all the progress.

Yea! We are graduating in just 15 days

We appreciate your continued prayers for our seniors as they make plans for their futures, and for the progress of the new school. There is so much to accomplish and we trust the Lord to make it all possible to start the new school year by August.

rat, rest, CAM construction, and summit

2011-04-16T23:07:00.000-07:00

April 17, 2011

Since our last blog we have had a week break from school, been to South Africa to see the dentist and the doctor and to buy supplies, and we have had another work day at the new school site. Each day continues to bring new adventures and challenges.

During the school break we took a few days to travel to South Africa for some R & R. We usually stay at Mercy Air which is a large beautiful compound with many guest rooms and cottages that are rented at reasonable rates to missionaries needing some rest. Each place has a kitchen or access to a kitchen and it is a beautiful place.

Our room at Mercy Air in South Africa

I guess missionaries aren’t the only ones that enjoy the beauty of Mercy Air. The first night we were there we had a little furry visitor. This little creature was different than his relatives, because in the morning after his visit, Larry discovered a hole gnawed in his toothpaste tube. When Susan needed the hand soap, she looked high and low for this huge bar of soap that had been there the night before. Larry discovered it behind the laundry basket with big gnaw marks as well as little claw marks where he tried to haul it away. Goodness! This little guy was concerned about his hygiene. We even had food in plain sight and the rat didn’t even bother with that. By the 4^th night we had finally rounded up a rat trap and put an enticing piece of pizza as a lure. About 3 a.m. Monday morning we heard a big snap and we got it!

School is back in session and there are 31 school days before graduation. Everyone is ready for the summer break, and we still have several weeks to go.

Dinah painting...more on herself than the wall?

Marie painting the trim in a High School classroom

building the new entrance to the offices and reception area

The new school building continues to progress. Several students came out during the break and finished painting four classrooms. It will be a bit of time before the next classrooms are ready to paint. The walls are getting higher and it is exciting to see all the work that is going on. We were able to submit the plans to build the bathroom block. Pray that we will get construction license quickly to build it in time for August.

During the break three CAM students and one teacher were able to attend a special summit to encourage high school students to get involved in their communities and help make things better. There were about 16 American International schools from all over Africa represented. The students had to present projects they had been a part of and ones there were planning to accomplish. Our students presented the plan that we have to offer a sports program to the community kids in the neighborhood of our new school. It is wonderful to hear the ideas the kids have and see their enthusiasm for what they can do. The highlight for the students was meeting one of the key note speakers, Graca Machel. She is the former wife of the first president of Mozambique and is now the wife of Nelson Mandela. They were so impressed with her.

Mr. Ben, Joash, Ude and Caris meeting Mrs. Graca Machel at the Summit

Thanks so much for your prayers. We pray that this Easter season will be a time to reflect on the great sacrifice of love that was made for us. The Lord is risen! He is risen indeed!!

Larry & Susan

just a general update on things...

2011-03-31T02:18:00.000-07:00

Beka Mech From One Mission Society sharing in Chapel

30 March 2011

So much has happened lately, that we just don’t have the time to sit down and write about it. First of all, we had Beka Mech from OMS headquarters come and visit and spend time with our field. She spent the day at CAM and shared in chapel.

New CAM student transport?

A new addition to the CAM vehicles is a work truck to help haul all the workers and supplies that are needed for the building site. I thought of another way it could be used. One of the greatest concerns of the parents for new school is transportation to the new school site. I had a great idea. How about the new truck? I had all the students stand in the back to try it out for size. Do you think the parents will go for the new CAM transport?

CAM students competing at the Swim Meet

The elementary students were involved in an Inter-school Swim meet. We had 12 students participate and it was good to see them compete against children from other schools in the area.

Larry & Susan leading worship at SNF

One of our ministries is the Sunday Night Fellowship. We help lead worship and set up about once a month. Other missionary families are involved too. This is a fellowship that is for those people who want to attend a service in English. There are missionaries as well as other Christian ex-pats who attend. The attendance hasn’t been that consistent and it seems as though only the missionaries who are busy anyway, are taking the time to keep it going. After a meeting with the group, it was decided to continue on until the holiday time in June and July and determine then if it will continue. Here we are leading the worship.

Our first night at Boa Nova

2011-03-17T04:30:00.000-07:00

17 March 2011

Enjoying lunch in the guest house

We had another work day at the new school campus, but this time it was over Friday afternoon and Saturday. We had seven students that helped out and we actually had a “sleep over” at the new property. The four boys, Larry and I stayed in the guest house and the two girls stayed with Aimee, our team member. We ate our meals together as a group and accomplished lots of work. We were painting again. The primer coat is on the “quad” rooms and now we have to choose colors for the final coat.

Caris painting more of himself than the walls?

The little guest house is a part of a duplex and has been used for housing various guests and visiting teams. We have been fixing it up little by little, making it a really cute place for guests. It has three bedrooms (beds for seven singles), one bathroom, a small kitchen and a dining/living area. The kitchen has been remodeled and the bathroom and kitchen have been tiled. It looks very cozy.

Canan painting the High School area

In the next few months it will be in use with teams from the U.K. and the U.S. The work crew has started work on the other duplex. We need additional housing on the campus for missionaries in the near future. We hope to move on the compound as well to be closer to the school.

The tedious job of painting trusses

We have been praying for the “Topographical Drawings” for the property for the last few weeks. Without these, we cannot apply for a permit for any new buildings. Praise the Lord, Melvin was able to get them yesterday. The next step is to finalize the plans we have and to apply for a building permit. We have already been building, but everything is inside existing buildings. We need to build a bathroom block and for this we need a building permit. Pray that this next step will go smoothly and we will get the necessary permit.

Pouring the footers for the classroom walls inside the old auditorium

CAM Secondary Field Trip Feb 24-26, 2011

2011-03-02T11:10:00.000-08:00

2 March 2011

Thursday, the 24th was here before we knew it and we were packing our “soft-sided bag, as small as possible” to take on the secondary school trip. There is not that much room inside the bus and the luggage either has to be inside the bus or packed into the back of Larry’s vehicle. We got everything in and we were on the road by 6 a.m.

This trip was totally different from the elementary trip. The secondary kids went to Eagle Adventures in South Africa. It is a camp that challenges the kids with all kinds of physical activities. It is run by an amazing Christian couple, Roelf (Trompie) and Susan, who physically challenge the kids and spiritually nurture them as well. They have a beautiful mansion-type house that can house 60 people that is surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery.

The kids were divided into three teams and completed for points by physical games, archery, javelin, ninja-type weapon throws, canoeing, zip lining, repelling and lots of hiking. They also had to come up with a cheer and team song as well as an advertisement and Bible skit.

All in all, we had an amazing time and delicious food in a beautiful place that was so fresh and cool.

Trompie and Susan have such a great ministry with students and adults as they challenge them to go beyond what they think they can do. Trompie speaks deep words of Truth and the kids listen. We are so blessed when we leave.

We did have an interesting event on our way there. We were just a few miles from the border when we came upon a terrible accident that had just occurred probably a minute or so before we got there. A car was completely crushed on one side and there were people still inside the smoking car. Don, our bus driver hopped out of the bus with the fire extinguisher in hand and Larry soon followed. They were able to pull out two survivors and get them to a safe place on the side of the road. The other two in the car did not make it.

I stayed in the bus with the students and we said a prayer for the people involved and thanked the Lord that we had not been at the site earlier. God is good.

We are glad to be back and have an incredibly busy week ahead of us. I believe we will be busy now until the end of the school year. We appreciate your prayers and emails of encouragement.

in Him,

Susan and Larry

The recipe for a successful elementary school trip.

2011-02-21T07:46:00.000-08:00

21 February 2011

Take 21 excited children
Add one bus driver and three chaperones
Mix together in a bus and a vehicle
Add candy, chips, cookies and soft drinks
Take away hours of sleep
See wild animals and reptiles

And there you have it – a successful school trip.

learning about the Chetah Reserve

We had amazing time on the elementary school trip this past Friday and Saturday. Larry and I along with Don, the bus driver, and Monique, one of the parents braved the trip with 21 fourth through sixth grade students. We left early Friday morning and got to the border in good time. While the agent was processing our passports, he was especially careful with the ones from Mozambique. Fortunately, we always have the parents sign permission slips and I bring them with me on the trip. They wanted to make sure that the Mozambican children had permission to be on the trip. It happened to be Child Trafficking Awareness Week and the customs guys were making sure that we were not kidnapping the kids. That was an interesting start to our trip.

Our first stop was to the Cheetah Rehabilitation Center. They served us delicious hamburgers and showed us a DVD about the center. Then we got our own personal tour and met many different cheetahs, a lioness and beautiful lion. The lion’s mane was so perfect it reminded me of the lion in the movie Madagascar. He also gave us quite a show when he started growling making us aware that we were close to his “woman” and his territory.

The next stop was to the reptile park. We were introduced to many different reptiles by a DVD and then we got to experience them first hand. The brave ones were able to hold a python (just a young one) and have their photo taken for a key chain. The rest of the group observed at a safe distance. There were cages and glass display cases that held a nice variety of snakes and lizards.

We were able to see the demonstration of some of the behaviors of snakes and why we should not be afraid of them. Right!!! We were able to touch a spitting cobra, on the back part of the tail, of course. Our guide was entertaining and very informative. The gift store at this place benefitted from quite a bit of the kids’ spending money.

From there we drove to a resort that had two huge swimming pools. What a treat to swim in a huge heated pool surrounded by gigantic mountains. It was just breath-taking. We all enjoyed our time there.

The final stop for the day was to a game reserve that has lodging and meals for groups like ours. After rice and delicious stew, we dressed warmly for our night drive in an open-air safari vehicle. We were able to see several types of antelope, quite a few giraffe and a baby giraffe, only four weeks old. We saw several wild hares hopping through the grass and a spotted eagle owl. We saw wildebeest and zebra. This game reserve does not have any of the big cats. We were hoping to see the rhinos, but they weren’t around that night.

After the night drive we went back to our rooms, but not to sleep. I guess that’s part of a school trip. I think the kids did get some sleep, but not very much.

We were up and ready for breakfast before 7:30 a.m. and after packing and inspection to see if everything was put in the bus, we were off to the Maholoholo Rehabilitation Center. This is another center where injured animals are taken in and cared for. They have quite a few birds which have damaged wings or have been caught in snares. We were able to get in the giant cage with three varieties of vultures. Several people had the opportunity to put on a leather glove and hold a piece of meat and let the vultures land on their arm and grab the meat. That sounds simple enough, but it was quite exciting to say the least. The birds had not had meat in awhile and they were all trying to get a bite, not only of the meat, but anything that looked like meat. One vulture started eating one of the student’s fleecy, another actually took a couple of pecks of Larry’s leg. It was too much for us and the birds and so we had to exit the cage quickly. We didn’t want to be part of the next meal for these birds. It was exhilarating!

At this center we saw two more lions and a beautiful leopard and two honey badgers. There have some other animals, but they were not a part of our tour.

After a group photo, we boarded the bus and the other vehicle to make our way back down the hill. We stopped off for a delicious pizza lunch. Normally this place has a two for one deal, but that day it was buy two, get two free and an extra one on top of that. It was like the fish and loaves. After all of us had our fill of the pizza, we discovered that we still had over four full pizzas left. We saved them for a snack at the end of the trip.

We really had a wonderful time and the kids were sad to return back to Maputo. They so enjoyed the beautiful clean air in the mountains of South Africa and the great adventures.

Larry and I were thankful that the Lord had given us a safe trip with good traveling, no bus troubles and no injuries. We now look forward to the 7th – 12th grade student’s trip this Thursday. Pray that it will be as successful and fun.

OMS Mozambique Team Retreat

2011-02-07T11:37:00.000-08:00

7 February 2011

Last Thursday, February 3rd was a holiday for the Mozambicans and CAM has to close the school for country holidays. Because the holiday was on a Thursday, we decided to take off Friday as well. It was perfect for a long weekend team retreat. Larry made reservations months ago and what a challenge that turned out to be. The team decided to go to Bad Plaas, which means “bath place” in South Africa. It is a wonderful resort built on a hot springs. No matter what time of year, it is a lovely place to visit.

Our "home" at the retreat

South Africa is an English speaking country, but for some reason, they don’t seem to understand our “American” English. Larry spent several hours (at different times) shouting on the phone to try and get them to reserve three chalets for our group. They ended up with reservations for YWEIL. When everyone checked in they had to misspell our last name. What a riot.

Speakers: Louie & Craig

The team invited two pastors, Louis and Craig, from a church in Nelspruit, South Africa, that most of us attend when we are there. We had a wonderful time of singing, praying and listening to God’s Word.

The afternoons were left free for relaxing and enjoying the pools and other activities at the resort. It was just lovely.

Larry "Braai-ing"

Badplaas resort

We were reminded of God’s great love for us and that He had chosen us to be where we are, not because we are the only ones who can do the ministry here, but the fact that God wants us here so that He can work in our lives.

We ate lunch together at the restaurant there and for the evening meal we barbequed or had a “braai” as they say in South Africa. All in all, we had a very good time.

We ended our time at Bad Plaas on Saturday morning and then traveled to Nelspruit to do our normal shopping for ourselves and the school. Larry and I traveled back to Maputo Sunday morning to get ready for a busy week ahead.

Melvin & Sharon Kelly & twins, Larry & Susan Weil, Louie, Craig, Aimee Howarth, Don & Aleta Hulsey, Zac & Coleson

Retreat session at the resort

Boa Nova Work Day

2011-01-29T09:54:00.000-08:00

29 January 2011

What an amazing amount of work we were able to complete today! Saturday was our first work day at the new CAM campus. We recruited a group of eight students from CAM and arrived at the work site before 9 a.m. These students gave up their Saturday to work the entire day to earn money to go on the school trip which is scheduled for February 24th – 26th

Cleaning the book room

First on the agenda was to tidy up an old book room on the campus. Then we moved a room full of things in storage to the book room. It took six loads in the pick-up truck. There was lots of muscle and cleaning involved.

Salisa & Canan

Joash with the amazing hair

Future Classrooms being cleaned up

After a short break for lunch, the group went to one of the “pods.” This is a group of four rooms with a covered area in the middle that will be used for either elementary or high school classrooms.

Joash & Ude mopping up

The rooms were very dirty (thus the need for masks) and three of the four had bunk beds and wicker shelves in them. While some of the students were sweeping and mopping the rooms, the others were dismantling the beds and moving them to another storage area. It doesn’t sound like a lot of work, but it was and we got all four rooms emptied and cleaned up. The students were amazing. They worked so hard. I think our bodies will be sore tomorrow.

Our Mighy Crew: front: Joash & Ude, top left: Larry, Charlene, Salisa, Canan, Oko, Domingos & Zac.

We are going to continue to have these work days involving the students to give them the opportunity to earn money for their trip. The next project in a couple of weeks will be painting the rooms and cleaning up another set of classrooms. There is going to be a lot of work for a long time. We are so proud of the kids and it is a blessing to see them willing to work so hard for their future school.

Purchase of missionary compound and future CAM School location

2011-01-26T11:00:00.000-08:00

26 January 2011

Larry signing the contract to purchase Boa Nova

Dear friends and family,

Today is a very monumentous day for our OMS Mozambique team. I haven't been able to share about this until now as we didn't know if or when it would actually occur. But today during our weekly prayer meeting held at the home of Melvin and Sharon Kelly on the Boa Nova property, we officially signed the contract to purchase a 10-acre parcel of land about 7 miles from Maputo. The Boa Nova Para Africa mission compound was founded about 1991 and over the first 10 years their mission built several homes as well as a large church building, men's housing for Bible School and other classrooms. Over the years the missionaries have either left or relocated into Northern Mozambique, leaving just one couple, Don and Aleta Hulsey, on the compound. It is a huge responsibility to maintain and manage such a large property by just them.

About seven or more months ago several circumstances happened that began to confirm that now might be the right time to pursue the purchase of this property. 1, missionary housing rental costs continue to escalate in and around Maputo making it more difficult to find affordable and safe housing for our missionaries. 2, CAM School's current building is now too small to meet the need and demand. It has a capacity of about 70 students and we are exactly at 70 students. Our current site has very little playground space, and what we do have is all cement. For the first time in our 15 year history as a school, we have had to turn down students or put them on waiting lists due to not having enough space. 3, until about seven months ago, the roads to Boa Nova were primative (sand) and the property couldn't be justified as adequate for a school location. The government has begun paving the 2.2 km road that was all sand, and is currently over 50% finished. The unfinished portion was covered with hard packed clay and is very adequate for vehicles. 4, Don Hulsey is our OMS Seminary Director, and his wife, Aleta, teaches at CAM school. We already have a partnership with Boa Nova and the Hulseys and they are all dear friends. 5, We currently have three OMS missionaries living in housing on the Boa Nova property. ....and the list continues.

L2R: Melvin & Sharon Kelly, Susan Weil. seated Don and Larry

For the past many months, we have been praying, researching, praying some more, negotiating costs, possibilities, etc. to make this a reality. One of the last steps in this process was to sort out how to pay for the property and have One Mission Society (OMS) give their stamp of approval. That was granted last week.

Now the "real" work begins. The existing classrooms have not been used for the past 10 years so major renovations will need to be done, as well as construct bathrooms and add administration offices, computer lab and library. We hope and pray it can be accomplished by August 2011 to move CAM School to this new location.

Specifically pray for the legal processes that need to be done: 1, transferring the title to OMS and registering the property. This is a multi-step process here, and will probably take months to complete. 2, pray we can sort out the building licenses so we can begin construction on the new additions. We do have a current building license to remodel the existing buildings which will keep us busy for a while, but we do need the new license soon enough to allow time to build the bathrooms and administration wing and have them done by July to make the move. As you can see, we are dreaming big and trusting the Lord to help us through. Your prayers will be much appreciated.

Ultimately, to make the complete school remodeling and additions needed over the next few years we will need to sell our current CAM School building. It is a valuable asset and we pray the right buyer will come with a good offer.

These are exciting days for our team. If all goes well and we are able to move the school by August, we will most likely move ourselves to one of the apartments at Boa Nova in June for the few remaining months we would have until our furlough would begin in late September.

We'll keep you posted as things progress.

God Bless,

Larry & Susan

CAM Christmas Program 2010

2010-12-20T05:36:00.000-08:00

20 December 2010

Dear family and friends,

The Dead Shepherds band

Mary, Joseph and the youth

The musical was chosen in September, practices started the first part of October and the final production was last Friday, December 17th. There is always so much work and energy put into getting the Christmas program ready for the performance. The musical was one that we had presented five years ago. It was called “A Band of Shepherds” and it was about a group of shepherds who were a rock band and had been hired to entertain the people in Bethlehem during the census. While they were out in the fields they encountered an angel band that rapped and danced and told them the message of a Messiah born in Bethlehem. It changed their lives. They now had hope and something to live for. It was great.

We had a full house in the seminary chapel and the students did an incredible job of the musical. The fourth through sixth grade students were the angel band while the seventh through twelfth grade students were the choir and cast.

Silvio doing a rap with the angel band

a happy angel

The Kindergarten and first grade class presented a number and the second and third grade classes presented two numbers and a short skit. I don’t think that we have any shy kids at CAM, and if they come shy, they don’t stay shy for long.

The most rewarding part of being a part of CAM is hearing the parents say how much they appreciate having a Christian school for their kids and that they like the family atmosphere.

The program is over and now we have two more days of school, exams for the high school students, and then school will be out until January 17th. Larry and I look forward to having some R & R at a friend’s guest apartment near the beach. We look forward to sleeping in (if that is possible for us), reading, watching DVDs and getting some sun on the beach.

National Assembly Meeting presents new Church Discipline

2010-12-19T11:21:00.000-08:00

Raul showing the Discipline

National Assembly in T3 Church

19 December 2010

Dear friends and family,

Juka Fernando praying over Discipline

Yesterday we were able to partcipate in the National Assembly meeting of our national church Igreja Evangelica Palavra Viva. In typical Mozambican style, it was to start at 9 AM but it finally got under way by 9:45. The objective of the meeting was 1, celebrate the 5th aniversary of the National Church registration. 2. To adopt the newly created church discipline. Seems pretty simple. Four hours later the meeting was coming to an end. Between the beginning and ending was filled with reports and encouraging words from some of our church leaders and the reading of the Discipline. This is such a big milestone for the church. Since 2005 when the church was officially registered with the Department of Religious Affairs, the church has slowly been working on developing the discipline to help guide it in its decision making. It has definitely been a long and tedius process. Many versions of the discipline have been written, reviewed, rewritten. Even the present version adopted is just the beginning and we know will need revision and additions. For me, the Discipline is a "living" document that will grow with the church and will need revision regularly as times and circumstances change. But it is a great beginning. Something that gives the church and the leadership guidance to make the tough decisions and to help and encourage the church to spiritaul maturity.

Church leaders and wives

With over 100 churches throughout the country now, the Discipline is essential and now the church can move forward with the development of local, disctrict, regiional and provincial leadership. Susan and I believe the church is moving forward and we feel privileged to have been here when the very first church was planted in 1997 when it met under

Pastor Daniel cutting 5th Anniv cake

a tree in the township of T3. We have watched that church struggle and grow and seen other churches planted over the years. We are excited that the National Church is recognizing its role in reaching its own people for Christ. Please remember to pray for the National Church and its leadership. Specifically remember to pray for Juka, Daniel, Raul and Abel.

Thanksgiving and more

2010-12-11T11:37:00.000-08:00

Larry & Susan with the Khongolote pre-school kids

December 11, 2010

December is a busy month for us in Mozambique and we always look forward to our break from school, but before we can take that break we have many things that are on our agenda.

Thanksgiving at Boa Nova

First of all, going back to November, we had a lovely Thanksgiving with several missionary families out at Boa Nova, a missionary compound. There were 37 people who enjoyed the delicious potluck dinner.

Pastor Glenn Fretz shares the Word

After Thanksgiving we had a visit from Pastor Glenn Fretz, retired pastor from Chilliwack Evangelical Missionary Church (in Canada). It was great to be able to show him some of our ministries as well as he was able to preach and share a couple times.

Susan with students Joash and Silvio baking goodies

Moving into December I was busy baking goodies for the staff Christmas party. I had some help from a couple of the 10th grade boys this year. Here are Silvio from Nigeria and Joash from the Philippines helping me make Nanaimo bars. (A special cookie from Canada) We also pulled out the decorations and decorated the house to make it look more festive.

CAM Staff Party at our home

The CAM staff Christmas party was December 7th and even though it was rainy in the afternoon we had a group of 22 people. There was plenty of food and during our time together we shared memories of our favorite Christmas and Christmas traditions. It is always a special time and we are blessed to have such a great staff at CAM.

Baptism in the Indian Ocean

Saturday, December 11th was a special day for five people from our church and five people from a sister church. These ten people were baptized in the ocean this morning. It was a beautiful service on the beach and we celebrate with these believers as they took this step of faith. Pray for them as they live their lives day to day, that they will make godly choices and follow the Lord in all things.

Those baptized today, December. 11, 2010

CAM School starting its 15th year on the 10th

2010-08-08T08:59:00.000-07:00

Dear friends and family,

Where has the months of June and July gone? It has definitely been a busy two months for us. It does seem a bit of a blurr, but we will try to give a brief update.

CAM School has been a busy hub of activity all school break. Our full time teachers, after their vacations, returned to tutor some of our students who needed extra help. In all 12 students spent most of the break working on English skills (those who are English as a second language) and a couple worked on courses they needed repeat in order to meet graduation requirements. The workers did a lot of painting and repairs and Larry added a commercial reverse-osmosis water filter system. With more and more students attending, and tap water not safe to drink, we have had to purchase bottled water. It was becoming too expensive and unreliable delivery of the water helped make the decision to purchase our own water purifying system.

We also were planning on a missionary couple to arrive by July to teach 2nd grade and High School math classes. Unfortunately, they were not able to raise their support in time and their arrival has been delayed until January. Pray for the Faxons as they raise up their prayer and financial partners. So, the search was started to find replacement teachers. The Lord answered our prayers with a husband and wife who are Mozambicans but were educated and trained as teachers in Zimbabwe. As of the past week we are fully staffed and we have a record 71 students enrolled.

Due to the steady increase in enrollment over the past few years, we have now maxed out our current building and are sadly having to turn students away for lack of space. Our building has been a blessing the past 10 years but it is now time for CAM to search for a bigger facility and with more outdoor space for sports and PE. During these past two months we have searched and looked at different alternatives, but to date only one place seems both affordable and has sufficient space and buildings. Pray with us as we continue this process and we seek the Lord's direction and will for CAM's future. We'll keep you posted as things progress, but in the meantime, just pray. God knows!

One of the more interesting aspects of the summer (winter here) was the 4th of July celebration held at the US Ambassadors residence. I was asked to sing the National Anthem. At first, I thought it was to just a small group, but at the dress rehersal I was informed there would be up to 500 in attendance. I was a bit nervous, but I think it went well and at least I didn't forget the words. I was supposed to lead it with others joining in, but it was more of a solo.Here are pictures of our ambassador, Madam Rowe and some of the dignitaries at the event.

Another major occurance was the completion of the Dave and Ann Dedrick's first term on the field. They have faithfully overseen all the ECC (Every Community for Christ) evangelism teams as well as the CMED (Micro Finance) program and many other responsibilities. They left for a year of Home Ministry on July 22nd. That leaves just Susan, myself and Aimee Howarth as the OMS team in Mozambique. The reality of just the three of us to oversee all our ministires is overwhelming. But we trust the Lord for his strength and wisdom as we direct the work here this year.

We are excited that in just six weeks we are anticipating the arrival of missionaries Melvin and Sharon Kelly. They are from Ireland and will be joining us with their twins (9 months) Joshua and Abigail. Melvin has spent three years as a missionary in Mozambique but this time he will be returning with a wife and children. We are so happy to have them join us. Pray for Melvin and Sharon as they make their adjustment to Mozambique and for their future ministries. They will be working in Compassionate Ministries within our national churches and seminary. Pray for Sharon as she studies Portuguese and for Melvin as he refreshes his.

Another exciting milestone is the near completion of the Mocuba Training Center in Northern Mozambique. Just this past week it was innaugurated and the first pastoral training seminar conducted by our ECC workers, Juka and Abel was held. I am anxious to see pictures and hear results soon. Pray for water for this property as several bore holes were dug but no success in finding water enough to put a hand pump or submersable pump.

We are also pleased to announce that the National Church has finished the Church Discipline, or as they call it the Manuel de Disciplina. It has taken over three years to get this far and it is now being presented to the churches. This document will be so important for the church and its leaders as they grow and mature giving them tools to deal with difficulties, as well as defining pastoral and church leadership roles.

Anaother exciting opportunity is that we have visitors from Korea with us now for the next three weeks. This couple, Ilbong and Seung Yeon, are about to finish up a seven month missionary internship in Korea and the Korea Evangelical Holiness Church is sending them to Mozambique as missionaries. We are helping them with housing, meals, transportation and arranging meetings so they can get a good picture of life in Mozambique and ministry opportunities. This is a great opportunity for partnership with the Korean Evangelical Holiness Church and OMS Mozambique. Pray many doors will open for future ministry together.

Personally, we are both doing well and are healthy. We were able to take five days off recently and go to South Africa for some R & R as well as take care of routine doctor and dentist visits.

Looking back over the past two months we want to give praise to the Lord as we see His hand in so many things that have taken place. We also look forward to this next school year knowing that it will be challenging, but also encouraging. Pray with us for continued good health and strength as we continue to seek the Lord daily for spiritual direction and growth.

God Bless,
Larry & Susan

CAM school Picnic

2010-05-23T04:27:00.000-07:00

May 23, 2010

Dear Friends and family,

These are very busy days for Susan and myself at CAM school and for the mission. The past month has been busy with programs, potlucks and yesterday we capped the year with the annual CAM picnic. We had a very good day of fun and activities for the students and families, but we also had a tragedy.

Would you please pray for John Jeong, a 5th grader at CAM. We are not sure what happened, but at the picnic area there was a fire pit outside the fence that we think a ball had gone into. John jumped in to get it (we think) and he didn't know the ash was still hot. He burned his feet quite badly, so we washed the ash off the burned areas and notified his parents who met us back at CAM. John was treated at the trauma center and is home recovering. 90% is superficial, but 10% of the burn is serious. He'll recover, but it will be very painful the next few weeks. Your prayers would be very much appreciated.

At the picnic we had four bbq's cooking and a large amount of salads and deserts. Afterwards, our Sixth grade teacher, Ms Davidge, organized many games for the kids to play. This was the longest picnic we can remember with families not wanting to leave until almost 5pm. Although there was tragedy, we believe the picnic as a whole was a good ending to the CAM school year.

This coming week will be the final week for our two seniors, Orlando and Miriã. Graduation is on the 31st and the final day of school is on the 2nd.

The CAM Yearbook is coming along nicely and we have 2/3 printed and we should be able to finish the remaining seven pages by the end of the week so we can punch, collate and bind the 85 books. We give out the Yearbook the final day and have a signing party. We'll end the day with bbq hotdogs, chips and soft drinks for all.

Another item for prayer is the Sunday Night Fellowship. It is an English service we have been attending for over a year. We still mentor and attend our Portuguese church service each Sunday morning.

The Sunday Night Fellowship has had some changes as all the former leadership have left the country and now Larry and two others are leading this fellowship. Larry is also the treaurer/finance person for the church. We recently moved the service to our seminary. This is exciting and the service really ministers to Expats and missionaries needing to worship in English. Pray for us as we seek the Lord's will for this fellowship.

Lastly, as the end of the school year approaches, we are busy making plans for the next two months. Several items to pray for:

1. CAM textbook order ships from the USA on the 26th and is due to arrive in port July 14th. Pray it arrives on time and that the paperwork we need to process and clear customs will proceed quickly.

2. We are losing a few teachers and we need to find qualified replacements for August. This is very difficult as Mozambican teachers generally are not well trained or speak English well enough to teach the American curriculum we have. We also have limited finances to be able to offer salaries that are sufficient to interest teachers from the U.S., thus we need missionaries willing to raise their own support but have a heart for teaching missionary children. 3. Pray for the construction license we are seeking from the govt. to allow us to build on an office and three classrooms during the school break. The plans are almost finished, but need to be reviewed and agreed upon before we can submit to the government for approval. This will take a lot of prayer to be able to get the paperwork done soon enough and accepted by the govt. to start and finish this project sufficiently by August 1st so we can have school begin the next week. We trust the Lord but it will take a miracle for it to happen. Please pray.

God Bless each and every one.

Larry & Susan

CAM happenings and more...

2010-04-05T06:57:00.000-07:00

April 5, 2010

Dear friends and family,

The last month has been a hectic but exciting time for us in Mozambique. The seminary started on February 15th with 30 students and is doing very well. Director Don Hulsey is doing a great job as well as Daniel Maduel and Xavier Massingue who are all teaching the classes, which last each morning from 8 to 12:30. The next part of the curriculum consists of hiring tutors who are teaching the students who don't have a 10th or 12th grade education. These are big milestones for Mozambicans and because of the civil war which lasted 17 years and ended in 1992, we are just now realizing the devistation of the educational system which is now just recovering. I remember talking back in 1996 when we first arrived and seen the poor education standards, if any, and that we realized that it would take an entire generation for the country to improve...and it has. We are finally seeing young people graduating and going to college. A new merging middle class is developing. Mozambique is moving forward, and we have felt it a privilege to have been here and seen it happen first hand.

Each year we take the CAM students on a field trip. Many times we go to South Africa or Swaziland for two or three days. But we have wanted to find something here in Mozambique and this year we were able to go to Maputo Bay Adventures which is a survival camp just a little over an hour from Maputo, or 2.5 hrs by catamaran boat.

The first trip in February was for the 7-9th grade boys. There were seven of them and I (Larry) went as one of the chaparones. The camp is run by missionary friends, Jim and Stacie Bowers, who are using the camp to reach a more educated class of young people in the Maputo area. The camp is quite primative as we stay in tents and rough it a bit in the bush. The food is always great and the activities are full of challenges for the students to stretch themselves as well as develop key teamwork skills.

There were physical challenges and mental challenges associated with learning to use compasses and GPSes to find clues and locations on long hikes. One hike I was on was to be 7.5km but ended up being 15km due to lots of wrong pathes taken. But it was exciting to see the kids work through problems and learn to overcome them. On one long hike they had to find a village, barter their hats and machetes for two chickens, fire wood and manioca (tuber root). They didn't realize at the time that what they got was dinner and they had to kill, clean and cook the chickens and manioca. I have just one picture of "dinner" for the squeemish at heart....:)

A few of the favorite challenges were archery, team work to get everyone over the "Berlin Wall" and climbing the rock wall.

In the late evening all the students had to take turns with "guard" duty for two hours. A staff person was on duty as well and gave opportunity to just talk freely around the campfire about anything, including solving all the worlds problems and great discussions about Christ and what He means to each of us.

The last of the feld trips was taking 22 3rd-6th graders to Swaziland. Susan and four adults went along and the kids had a great time and experience. They left at 6am on Friday and returned Saturday evening. Their first stop was to a factory that makes specialty soaps out of marula fruit oils. It was quite interesting as the kids were given a tour and also were able to tun the machine to crush the nuts to extract the oil. They then drove to Nisela Safaris where they stayed the night in traditional Swaziland bee-hive huts. The kids loved hem and the challenge was to get in and out of the litle door which was about two feet tall. The day cntinued with a drive through safari where the students saw man variets of animals and were able to get out of the vehciles and see some close-up. Fortunately there were no carnivores at this game park. In the evening the students cooked over an open fire and made up skits to entertain everyone. It was a very long day and extremely hot so everyone was tired but the kids didn't want to go to bed as the beehives were so hot and had no fans. Eventually all were told to go to bed as the next day was to be a long one as well.

Saturday morning they left the camp and drove to Manzini where they toured the Swazi Candle Factory and craft shops. They were given demonstrations by a master candle maker where he was able to make an elephant from a block of wax. Many of the students were also given wax for them to experiment with.

All in all, the trip was a great experience for the kids and adults. They arrived home Saturday evening full of stories and tired from their long days. We are so thankful for having such amazing students. Many commented on how well behaved (really?) was the group and we too think they are special in deed.

Thank you for your prayers and continue them as we need the Lord's wisdom and vision to meet the challenges of running CAM school.

in Christ,

Larry & Susan Weil

Seminary Program Launching 15 Feb 2010

2010-02-09T03:47:00.000-08:00

13 February 2010

Dear friends and family,

Tomorrow is Valentines Day. And even in Mozambique there are lots of flowers on the streets and lots of pink Valentine gifts being sold up and down the street. It is one of the few foreign holidays that is really remembered here. And I think that is special...just like Susan is special to me after 28 years of marriage.

So much has happened since I last gave an update, so I am sure I will forget some important things, but what is exciting is that on Monday, February 15th, the seminary will launch its first year program with 30 students. The applicants come not only from our own national church "Living Word Evangelical Church" but from 14 other recognized churches in Mozambique. This will give a great mix of students. Ages range from 21 (minimum required) to 65.

Of course we have had Bible teaching going on since 2001, but only on a part-time basis. Now, these will be all-day students and this is a big change. We are so privileged to have Pastor Don Hulsey as our new seminary director and he has been working closely with our Dean of Students, Daniel Maduel and Xavier Massingue, our Registrar. Between the three of them they will share the teaching load for this first year.

We covet your prayers as we step out in faith to begin the program knowing we don't have the necessary scholarships and sponsorships to even run the program more than a few months, but God knows all this. I have been working hard on a funding letter which is now at OMS USA for editing, and once that is approved, we will be able to mail out to our supporters and interested friends and churches who have a special interest in seminary students knowing that it will be helping our graduates who will soon be pastoring, training and equipping the growing national church in Mozambique for the Gospel.

At CAM school, we are well into our second semester now and in January we added three new students bringing us to a record number of 61 students from 19 different countries. The challenge is that they are Portuguese first-language students and all are needing special tutoring to learn English to integrate into their classes.

We also are enjoying the return of Dr. Claude and Marilynn Meyers (former CAM director/founders from 1996-2006.) The Meyers are with us for five weeks and are helping out with tutoring, swimming and a drama to be performed in early March. The Meyers are staying with us making our home full.

CAM also is benefiting from a security upgrade grant from the US Embassy. Over the past two years many improvements have been made around CAM school and we had about used up the money we received, but about six months ago the plan to add a generator to run the school when power cuts happen was contemplated and submitted for approval. It was finally granted in late November and an extension received to install the generator by the end of February 2010. Well, the generator is resting at CAM and just needs it to be wired to the building. This will be such a huge blessing so that school can run as usual even if the power goes out. Computers and air-conditioners will continue to run and that is important on these very hot days.

Another exciting thing that happened over Christmas. We met a young man from the US who distributes solar-powered hand-held electronic Bibles. He has the ability to put eight Mozambican languages on the units. Well, we have a guard at our home who can't read and I was able to buy an electronic Bible in Portuguese and his HEART language. You should have seen his face when I turned it on for the first time and he heard the Gospels in his own language. He faithfully listens to it and others are asking if they can get one. Looks like I might need to raise some funds for this new need.

Lastly, for the past seven years we have been sharing a small water tank (750 liters) at our home with a home behind us. Almost every day when we would return home from CAM the tank would be empty and we would have no water until the following morning when the local water supply would start to fill up the tank again. Last November a supporting church informed us of some money we could use for a project. We shared the difficulties we had with our water system, and it was agreed. We added a second tank (one tank for each home) new water pumps, new piping and finished cement work around the tanks. Now we are enjoying water every day and that has just made life a bit easier for us. PTL!!!

God Bless,

Larry & Susan

2010-02-05T22:47:00.000-08:00

6 February 2010

Dear friends and family,

These are exciting days in the world of OMS. After much prayer and discussion, some of which I had the privilege to be a part of last June 2009 at Missionary Council in the USA, this past month OMS officially changed its name to One Mission Society. Below is the text version of the offical announcement made by OMS president, David Long.

It is wonderful to see that the vision of our founders over 100 years ago is still that same vision today of reaching the world for Jesus.

In Him, who matters most,

Larry & Susan Weil

One Mission Society, Mozambique

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FROM David Long, OMS President:

Dear Friend of OMS,

We have some exciting news to share:

OMS International becomes One Mission Society

One Lord. One Life. One Calling.

Today, we launch a new name, tagline, logo and mission statement. These changes were designed to help One Mission Society better communicate what we have stood for since our inception in 1901 as The Oriental Missionary Society.

But it is important to note, One Mission Society’s sole reason for existence as a mission organization remains steadfast―to see the Gospel of Jesus Christ spread throughout the world and to see God glorified in all that we say and do. This is the command of the Great Commission. This is our “One Mission.”

God has blessed OMS by using us as a tool in His hands for more than 100 years. Today, One Mission Society is seeing, on average, one person come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ every two minutes. In recent years, thousands of new churches have been planted and tens of thousands of people are actively participating in discipleship programs.

These are historic times to be involved in missions. As never before in the history of the Church, One Mission Society is poised to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Make no mistake: the task is huge. OMS recognizes that we are only a small part of the body of Christ and that we join with many other individuals, churches and like-minded Great Commission organizations called and equipped together for One Mission, God’s mission. This is the unity in mission to which all Christians are called in Ephesians 4 by our one God and Father of all.

One Mission Society currently works in 50 countries. We were founded on the principle that the most effective way to share Christ is by training a nation’s people to lead and multiply their churches. That principle still fully applies today and is the basis of our dynamic four-fold focus: intentional evangelism, church planting, training leaders and strategic partnerships.

OMS currently has six international offices from which missionaries are recruited and sent out: Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. Today, One Mission Society has 430 missionaries and is a member in good standing with the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.

Here is One Mission Society’s new mission statement: By God’s grace, One Mission Society unites, inspires and equips Christians to make disciples of Jesus Christ, multiplying dynamic communities of believers around the world.

David Long

President, One Mission Society

Christmas just around the corner

2009-12-13T00:08:00.000-08:00

December 13, 2009

Dear Friends and family,

This past week has been hectic and exciting for us as Christmas draws closer. We have had several Christmas programs and a wedding to attend. Here are a couple pictures from the wedding of Golden and Olivia on Dec. 4th. Golden is Mozambican and teaches 3rd grade at CAM.

On December 11th CAM presented its annual Christmas Program. It was held at the new seminary chapel and we had the largest turnout in CAM history, packing the chapel full of students, parents and friends. We kept having to add more chairs.

All grades presented something special, from verses to musical talent. The main program was a musical and drama presented by the 3rd-6th grade students, with Susan directing. It was called "Legacy of Love" and the kids did a super job. The 7th - 10th grades helped with the behind the scenes planning and set-up. After the program, there was food for all and good time of fellowship.

With a big sigh of relief that the main Christmas program is over for CAM, we now focus on the Sunday Night Fellowship program tonight (Dec. 13th) in which we both will be participating with music. On Tuesday, Susan and I will be hosting the annual CAM Staff Party at our home. We anticipate about 25 teachers and staff to attend. The week ends with school finishing for the students on Thursday and on Friday for the teachers to allow them to get all their grades turned in before the Christmas break.

December 20th we will be celebrating the Igreja Evangelica Palavra Viva national church's 4th anniversary with lunch and program at the seminary. Christmas for us this year will be in Xai Xai, which is about four hours North of Maputo. We will be with friends, Jason and Rachel Helm. They have invited a few others to join them for Christmas, so there should be at least 13 for the holidays.

We have much to Praise the Lord for this past year, and HE has blessed CAM and our ministries in Mozambique. We do have one major prayer request, which involves our association with the Department of Labor. We hope to find some way to work with the government with its strict new rules regarding foreigners working at the school. This affects who and what CAM really is, and we need much prayer and wisdom to know how to find favor with the government hoping that we will be able to continue to offer a Christian American education to the students who choose to attend.

We wish you all a blessed Christmas and a joyful and Spirit Filled New Year!

God Bless,

Larry & Susan Weil

OMS Mozambique

Much to be THANKFUL for

2009-11-21T08:16:00.000-08:00

November 22, 2009

Dear Friends and Family,

In just a few days we will be celebrating American Thanksgiving. It is great to be married to a Canadian as we get to celebrate Thanksgiving twice. This year we have much to be thankful for and we just want to share a few of those things with you.

October of each year since we first arrived in Mozambique in 1996, is the month we apply for renewal of our resident visas. We PTL that each year we have been accepted and our visas granted. This year, we decided to ask for the "permanent DIRE (visa)" which is good for five years at a time. We were able to ask for this special visa after being in the country more than 10 years.

After only a few trips to Immigration to see on the progress, I went Friday (20th) not expecting anything, but PTL they were ready. This means a lot to us as we know we have the right to stay in Mozambique for the next five years.

Another answer to prayer is our health. My back (Larry) is doing very well and other than colds and sore throats (like most everyone I know of), we have been healthy. We are looking forward to a few days off over Thanksgiving and will spend a few days in South Africa on dental and car repairs, as well as some rest and Christmas Shopping.

This is also the time when Susan starts baking Christmas goodies and preparing for the annual CAM (Christian Academy in Mozambqiue) staff Tea at our home. The weather the past week has been unseasonally cool and wet, so she has been baking lots to take advantage of the cool weather. Some of the students will be coming to our home soon to help bake and decorate other Christmas goodies. Susan is already counting the days when she will start putting up the Christmas decorations (her favorite holiday of the year).

We can't forget our faithful and loving (sometimes playful) Felix. Felix is now 10 and continues to amuse us. We are "cat" people, so we love Felix and spoil him all the time with goodies and attention.

Yesterday we were invited by some of the young people at our church (which meets at our seminary) for a fashion and talent show. It was totally put on by a few of the young teen girls and was really cute. Clothes were designed and modeled. Singing and dancing were also on the agenda. It was really important to them we attend and we were glad to be able to support them. Here are a few pictures you might enjoy from the program.

In a few weeks CAM will be buzzing with drama and music at the Christmas Program on the 11th. The school year so far has gone well and we are so blessed by a good staff and "mostly" wonderful students. Actually, all of them are special.

If you are American, we wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving and even if you aren't, may the Lord bless you and abundantly. Remember to give thanks to HIM whom we love and serve...Jesus!

God Bless,

Larry & Susan

Empty Nest...almost

2009-10-04T01:47:00.000-07:00

4 October 2009

Dear family and friends,

We have been reflecting that since March, we have had at least one and at times three visitors living with us up until yesterday. So, for a total of two days, we are empty-nesters. Feels kinda quiet around the house. But that will change again tomorrow when Pastor Alfy Austin from World Gospel Church, Terre Haute, IN visits us in country for five days. We are very excited as we have not met Pastor Alfy, and he is the first pastor from any of our supporting churches to visit us in Mozambique. It will be a busy week of showing him our various ministries and meeting our team and staff.

Yesterday we had to say goodbye (sadly) to Christina Folchi, (beside Susan in photo) a student teacher from Connecticut that attends Philidelphia Biblical University. She has been living with us the past two months and doing her student teaching with Patricia, our K-1 teacher. Chris has been wonderful to have around and was a great blessing to Patricia and her 11 students. We wish Chris a wonderful transition back to the USA and as she begins her final student teaching assignment in a public school. Pray for Chris as she is seeking the Lord's will for her future when she graduates this December.

We have wonderful news and an amazing answer to prayer regarding our seminary program. Many of you have followed the saga of not having a director to run the program in our new seminary building, then the good news that Mike and Sarah Thiessen joined the team in may 2008 and Mike was preparing the school to begin this year, only to have that vision end when their son, Gabriel (just 2 1/2 then) was diagnosed with liver cancer and they had to return to Canada for treatment. So, for the past six months, it was back to seeking the Lord's will and searching for a new director. We PTL that a good friend of ours and of OMS Mozambique has accepted the position. Don Hulsey and his wife Aleta, have served in Mozambique since the mid- 1990s (as long as we have) and he is already working with our Dean of Students, Daniel Maduel and Registrar, Xavier Massingue. The next few months will be busy as they work on the final curricuulm details, interview perspective students, and prepare for a February 2010 launch date. We do have two classes going right now, but those will be incorporated and expanded upon with the new program. Pray for Don and our team as we too seek the Lord's will for the seminary program.

One serious prayer concern is for some of our evangelism trainers. Sadly we have had to release three trainers recently due to family issues. These three positions leave major gaps in the training and church planting efforts in Northern Mozambique. We need the seminary program running and producing effective and well-trained pastors and teachers to send to these rural areas, which will provide solid Biblical foundations and teachings to these new churches. Currently we have over 100 churches in the country, with the majority up in the Zambezia and Nampula provinces.

CAM school (Christian Academy in Mozambique) is running well and we are coming up to the end of the first quarter this Friday. Thus, this week is full of quizzes and exams for the students. Space is an ever-present problem, and we are working with a contractor about adding on an offic and three small classrooms to the front of our building. Currently, plans are being prepared to submit to the government for approval. This is a big prayer request as we are asking for permission to build to our boundary wall, and that usually isn't granted. Secondly, we need sufficient funds to cover the construction cost. It isn't confirmed but although the construction is extimated at around $60,000, that is still a huge amount for our little school. But God is good and in control.

Personally, we both are doing well, and my back (Larry) is giving me no pain, which I PTL for. We are encouraged as we have several teams coming in the next two months in which there are some people that may be considering working with OMS at CAM and possibly the seminary. Pray for God's leading in their lives. We are also looking forward to our mission retreat in early November.

(see photo: us celebrating our 28th wedding anniversary on Augst 29th)

Thank you each one for your continued prayers and support.

Larry & Susan

August highlights

2009-08-23T06:27:00.000-07:00

23 August 2009

The last three weeks have been full and amazing. So much has happened, and it will be hard to tell you it all. So, we'll save you from some of it and focus on three events: CAM schoolyear starts August 6th, Seminary Dedictation August 15th, and Larry's Neurosurgeon apt. on August 19th.

We knew that it would be a busy month before school would begin. We returned July 12th, leaving only three weeks to prepare CAM for classes again. It was apparent that other than our two graduates, all our former students were returning as well as some new students. Thus, we decided to divide one classroom into two to allow for separate classes of 2nd and 3rd grades. We met the deadline by just hours it seems, and CAM started on the 6th with a record number of students at 61. For the first time in CAM history, we have had to turn students away due to a lack of space. This is in the K-1st grades as that classroom is full with 11 students. We now have a few others on waiting list. We also PTL that we have a full contingent of teachers. It is so important for the students to have consistency, and to have returning teachers is so important for the students. We also have some new teachers. David Restrick, CAM grad 2004, is teaching computers for the year. Honey Davidge is from the US and is teaching 6th grade. Joash Tiarks, missionary with New Tribes, has moved his family from Northern Mozambique to Maputo and has enrolled his four children and he is teaching 2nd grade.

Most exciting news this past week was that our textbooks had arrived in port and were finally released on the 18th. Teachers and students are all happy to have the new materials. They "only" took 3 months by sea to arrive....:)

Another exciting event was the formal seminary dedication on the 15th. Three special people were able to come and celebrate with us. Former OMS Mozambique field leaders from 1996-2006, Bruce and Mabel Callender were here to participate in the ceremony, and Michael Thiessen, the seminary director, was able to fly in from Canada to be here. The ceremony was well attended and one of the highlights was honoring the Callenders by naming the chapel in their name (Chapel Callender, or in Portuguese - Capela Callender) and by hanging a picture collage of the Callenders in the seminary foyer.

We have been very encouraged with some future partnerships with the seminary. Please pray for us and the seminary program as we make decisions as to its future direction.

Lastly, Larry had an Dr. appointment with a neurosurgon on the 19th in South Africa to read his MRI results on his back and to determine if surgery is needed. It is hard to believe that just a month ago Larry was in such back pain with a pinched sciatic nerve, and today there is no pain. I credit this to so much prayer and we give the Lord PRAISE. And the news gets better. The Dr. indicated that I am not a candidate for surgery right now. With the pain subsided and that I still have full strength in my leg, I don't need surgery. It seems the ruptured disc piece that had lodged against the nerve has shifted, and the Dr. feels that has been mostly absorbed by the body in the amazing way the body heals itself. It could happen again, but for now we are pleased. Larry does have a bit of nerve damage in his right leg, but that is minimal and controlable. The Dr. encouraged regular exercise and exercises to strengthen abdomen and back muscles to help relieve pressure on the disc. I think that will be actually the hardest part to do.

Our team is doing well and it is such a pleasure having Mike Thiessen with us for two weeks. We PTL that little Gabriel Thiessen is recovering well after his final chemotherapy treatment and we pray he will be and continue to be 100% cancer free. Our home is full and we have currently two ladies living with us. Aimee Howarth will be moving to the North of Mozambique sometime in the future to work with Mozambican women, and Christine Folchi, a student from Pennsylvania Biblical University is doing her two-month teacher training at CAM. Chris is assisting with our K-1st grade teacher. It is a blessing to have both of these fine ladies in our home.

Have a wonderful week!

Larry & Susan

Back in Mozambique

2009-07-19T02:57:00.000-07:00

19 July 2009

Dear friends,

We have been back in Mozambique a week now. The past month in the USA and Canada were both good and bad. We enjoyed so much the reunions with so many of our former OMS Mozambique missionaries at the OMS mid-west conference the end of June. In fact, Mozambique was the largest field represented at the conference. It was fun to catch up with Claude and Marilynn Meyers (former directors of Christian Academy in Mozambique) as well as Bruce and Mabel Callender (former field directors of Mozambique) as well as colleagues Vaughn and Cindy Telfer, Glenn and Kris Berryman and girls, as well as Becca and Melvin and Sharon Kelly. The exciting news was just on Thursday the Kellys called to tell us that they are expecting a baby. The Kellys are currently in the US for Cross-Training, and are funding to come as career missionaries to Mozambique soon. Pray for them as they need to make decisions now that a little one is on the way.

Our time in Canada June 29-July 10th was one of joy to spend some time with Susan's Dad and step-mom, Nathan and Anne Krampitz, as well as visit with the Thiessens (Mike and Sarah) in the hospital while little Gabriel was receiving his chemotherapy treatment. We were also able to see little Maylah who was just two weeks old. She is adorable. We PTL that Gabriel is recovering well from his surgery and that in the next week or so will begin his FINAL chemotherapy treatment. The rest is just watching and waiting. Continue to pray for the Thiessen family as they search what the Lord wants them to do next. We know they will not be able to return to Mozambique for any time soon. We miss them so very much.

The bad part of our time in US and Canada was that I (Larry) had some serious back pain which continued to worsen until it was excrutiating pain while in Canada. Our holiday time with family was cut short as I had to return to Hamilton, ON to go to emergency. As we don't have a primary doctor in Canada, there was little that could be done there. So, we made the 30+ hr flights back to Maputo. PTL the pain subsided considerably so I was able to make the long flights. We know many were praying and I felt those prayers.

This last Friday, 17th, I was able to go to Nelspruit, South Africa and get an MRI to find out what the problem was. It was confirmed I have a herniated disc and a piece of the inner portion of the disc has come out and wedged itself agains the nerve, thus creating the pain. fortunately for now the piece has shifted (I am sure it was prayer) to the side so I can tolerate most things right now.

But, I need to see a neurosurgeon soon to see about having that piece removed as it is almost certian to shift again and pinch the nerve. Pray for this as we are in such busy days here and I need to be able to work. We will know more once we can arrange a visit with the neurosurgeon.

It is good to be back in Maputo and we are busy preparing for the starting of CAM again.

God Bless,
Larry & Susan

Weils are in Indiana

2009-06-19T04:36:00.000-07:00

Susan and I are in Greenwood, IN at the OMS World Headquarters attending the OMS field leadership retreat and meetings. We arrived from Mozambique on Monday, 15th, and it has been wonderful seeing our many friends and colleagues with OMS. Today begins our weekend retreat with the field leaders of all the OMS fields. This week we have seen two former Mozambique missionaries, Glen (Tom) Berryman with his girls, Chelsea and Jessica, as well as yesterday Becca Pullin and her fiance, Joey, who drove from Circleville, OH to spend the day with us. That was very special.

I am working on a new newsletter which I will post here once it is finished.
God Bless,
Larry & Susan