The Fortunes

It was almost a year ago that we started getting the Pastor’s Wives in the city of Baku together.  We meet once a month for a chance to get to know other ladies  in similar situations, pray together and encourage one another in small groups and collectively.  It is a time designed specifically for Pastor’s wives.  At first we met at the BIF church office but now we are meeting in a room at a coffee shop in a central location in town.  The surroundings are pleasant and we serve tea/coffee and desserts.  The ladies are beginning to get to know one another and a rapport is beginning to develop.  It is great to be able to discuss things and offer support in a number of ways.  Our gatherings are lead in English and translated into Azeri and Russian.  This picture shows one table of ladies.  It is great knowing that we are all working for a common purpose and we are not alone in our endeavors.

Sunday started with a baby dedication of Nicki and Lala’s baby.  Her name is “Angel-la”.  This couple has been a part of our fellowship since we came and have been active members of BIF.

Thursday was a great day of welcoming our Ladies Bible Study into our home.  We will start our new study of the book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality this Fall.  In the Spring we were sad to say good-bye to a number of ladies but the Fall has brought in many new people.  Isn’t this a great looking group of women?

We ended the week (Saturday) with a trip to the beach.  We tried a new spot passed the airport, at the end of the Absheron Pennisula. We all felt it was a nice day to get out of the city and enjoy the sun-shine.  We packed a picnic lunch, walked/jogged along the beach, buried Erin in the sand, played catch, swam and read a little–I think I even had a nap!!!  It has been a good week.

When I was in Canada I bought myself an early birthday present. It’s a Kindle. Many people haven’t heard about them but I have been wanting one for quite a while. Since coming to Azerbaijan I have often complained that I couldn’t get enough English reading material. Well, I found the answer in my Kindle. (Amazon ought to pay me for this endorsement.)

A Kindle is an electronic book reader. It’s not primarily designed to read to you (although it can do that) but it allows you to download electronic books from Amazon and read them on the Kindle. The main screen on the Kindle is not like your computer but rather very much like reading a book. Amazon has thousands of books for download (although some I wanted aren’t yet available in this format) and most books cost $9.99. Once you have your Kindle you can log onto the Amazon site and download books from anywhere in the world. This is much more efficient for me than having someone ship over books or bringing back heavy books in a suitcase.

The problem for Canadians is that you can’t buy one. What! That’s right. If you live in Canada (or anywhere outside the United States) you can’t buy a Kindle. Actually, it’s not that you can’t buy one but rather they won’t sell it to you. In order to buy the reader you must have a US mailing address and a US dollar credit card with a US mailing address. Thankfully I have wonderful American friends who let me use their mailing address and credit card information. Then they shipped it to Canada for me. (This feels like I am confessing a crime.) Anyway, now in order to buy books I have to use coupons for Amazon to get around not having a US credit card.

It was worth the effort. I read every evening and am enjoying the wide variety of options that are available. I can even download newspapers and magazines. Currently I am reading two books: David McCullough’s biography Truman (I have been wanting this for years) and N.T. Wright’s book, Surprised by Hope (about where we go when we die.) I have a couple others waiting to be read as well. The Kindle can hold up to 1,500 books so I have lots of room.

So I thought I would let you know about my Kindle and since I do have a birthday coming up this month it’s never been easier to get me a present. Just click on this link, go to the Amazon site and purchase a gift certificate. You can do it now and set it up for delivery on the 20th.  How simple is that. (Boy, I’m shameless).  But, I really do like my new toy.

This past Sunday was an exciting day in the life of our church.  As we welcomed back many people after summer vacation, we also got a chance to welcome in many new people and families that are making Baku their home for the next season of their lives.

It was a busy morning:

The sound technicians and handy-men have been working hard to put in new speakers and sound system.  They installed a new screen for projecting our worship songs and power point.  The sermons are now recorded and placed on I-tunes, with the plan of having them linked to the church web-site.  There have been a lot of people working hard behind-the-scenes to get this up and running.  It is a great improvement.

Our Benevolent Fund offering was taken this morning.  This money goes to help those in need in our congregation.  A number of people set up clothes and household items to share with the church family.  You could shop for free and give money to the benevolent fund if you desired.

When the children were called to the front for their classes, the entire front of the church was packed.  We are bursting at the seams with young families and our Sunday School rooms are full of lively chatter and children ready to hear about God’s message of LOVE for them.

We were all invited after the morning service to enjoy a catered lunch in the cafeteria.  It was a chance to meet new people and connect with those we haven’t seen in a while.

BIF is a joyful place on Sundays!  It is a wonderful Oasis in the week where we can all go and meet together with like-minded people.  We are grateful for the opportunity of living in Baku and being a part of God’s great Church.

Our kids started school this past week, August 20th. It seems early but they do get a lot of holidays during the school year. Michaella started M4 (Grade 9) and is happy with her classes and other students she is with. She has really gotten to know the school system and the teachers and so that makes life a little easier. She is looking forward to art class.
Marissa is in M2 (Grade 7) and enjoyed the Middle School program that has a rotation of classes. She is not sure yet about all her teachers but as always takes it seriously and is well organized. Erin has arrived the end of the Primary Years program and is in P8 (Grade 5). They have a big project due at the end of the year and she is already tired of hearing about it. Her teacher’s name is Mr. Tiplady and he is new to the school. Jacob has Mr. Palmer and is in P5 (Grade 2). He is really starting to grow up and the work is getting more difficult but of course he is up for it. He seems to be happy being back at school.

Rhonda is back to school as well. She will be teaching the P3 and P4 Art classes this year. She has been busy arranging her schedule and getting her room all set up. She loves teaching the younger children and is looking forward to the year. She will be working Monday afternoons, Tuesdays and Wednesday.

It’s great to be getting back to routine and we are praying that everyone has a great school year!

David

A few days ago we returned from our summer trip to Canada. We had a good trip which means, the flights were on time, the kids traveled well and all our luggage arrived. The weather here is hot and dusty but that’s what we expected for the month of August.

While we were gone the people staying in our house said there was no water coming in from the city. They were using water from our holding tank. So on Saturday (our water day) I decided to go out and investigate. It didn’t take me long to find the problem. Someone (or something) had cut off our pipe out on the street. You can see the valve and pipe in the picture with Jacob.

Of course, none of the neighbours know what happened, it just did. So, what can you do? I’ll have to called a friend to bring over a plumber and fix it back up. However, I heard from people that the city is short on water and its unlikely we’ll get some flowing into the house anyway. So, that’s when I knew I was back home in Baku. And you know, despite the water problems, it’s nice to be back.

David

David and I are married 18 years today.  What a great 18 years we have had!  I am grateful to God for the man that he has blessed me with.  We have four wonderful children.  We are on an amazing adventure called life!!!  I look forward to the next 18 years ahead!  I love you hon.

Happy Anniversary!

This past weekend was the 6th annual Wild Winds Track & Field Tournament. Michaella and Marissa were both participants this year and both won medals. Michaella took part in Long Jump, Triple Jump and the 100M race. She won gold and set a new school record in High Jump. Marissa was in Long Jump and the 3000M (which sounds way too long for me.) Saturday and Sunday were long days at the track but the kids all had a good time. We were able to visit with many friends and enjoy the sunshine. The hot weather has hit Baku and it was about 32C on Sunday afternoon.

Way to go Girls!!!

The international news organizations are now reporting about events in Baku today. While there is no clear report yet it is clear that a very tragic event has happened. There has been a shooting at the Oil Academy and several university students are dead and others wounded. There are various reports about how many gunmen there might have been and what has happened to him (or them). You can get more information at this link http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/apr/30/azerbaijan-gunman-kills-college
The Oil Academy is right around the corner from my office. It is a building that I pass at least twice a day going to and from the subway. I came to the office for a men’s bible study at 7:00 AM this morning and was unaware of what was happening so close by. I did hear a lot of police sirens but didn’t think anything about it. Someone from the church called to see if I was okay since he had heard the news and knew it was close to the office. After that, several others called to see if everything was okay. I did go out at lunch and the police have many of the streets still blocked off. There seems to be a lot of confusion and many people are standing around in groups talking. It seems that some of the people have used their cell phones to video some of the events.

I have spoken to different people from the church but have not heard of this affecting anyone from the church. Please pray for the families of those who have died and pray for peace in the city. Pray that believers have an opportunity to minister and offer hope during this sadness. It seems to be the kind of attack that could happen anywhere but the people here are very unsettled by these events.  Thanks for your prayers.

David

I tried to put a picture in here of our recent camping trip but it wasn’t working. So I have decided to write an update without the picture. What’s been happening? Well, the kids had two weeks off school at the end of March. Rhonda found that to be a lot of time to have them at home. They, however, seemed to enjoy just hanging out and not doing much of anything. We did manage to get away for one night of camping with some friends. The night was cold but we made it through. It is really nice when we can get out of the city.

The kids returned to school last week and I took a few days and went to Turkey. I am recovering from ’shingles’ and just needed a few days to rest and get some long range planning work done. Rhonda managed great but of course never likes when I am away. Thankfully there were no issues with power, water, gas etc.

This week we are looking forward to Easter. I am working on a service for Good Friday evening and plans for Easter Sunday morning. Church has been busy and full lately and there is a great sense of joy when we are there. Some many people work to do their part and make everything happen. It’s a real model of body-life, where everyone uses their gifts for the benefit of the church. I will do my best to report next week how things have gone. That’s all for now.

David