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Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.......

03/30/2013

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow……

I have come to appreciate how God shows us His majesty and creativity through His colorful and artistic design in plants. (For those of you who do not know us too well, these are LeAnn’s thoughts, she loves plants!) West Africa has afforded me many fascinating new discoveries. We have recently discovered a night blooming cactus growing in our neighbor’s yard (which I had to get a start from, of course)! A very old cactus, its large white blooms appear once a year – only at night! (Yes, we had to slip out near midnight one night to make sure – sure enough they are night-blooming!) Many varieties of bright orchids can be found flourishing in this humid part of the world.

But there is one plant that truly caught my attention after we first arrived into Africa. Though it is commonly called the “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” plant, its formal name is Brunfelsia latifolia. I first noticed this plant near Easter one year. The plant was covered in dark violet blooms on the first day, the next day they turned lavender and on the third day a brilliant white. Perhaps this is why they are called, “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” plants.

Since that time, I have long associated these plants with Easter as they begin to bloom during Holy Week, turning from violet to lavender and by Easter Sunday morning the predominant color is normally one of pure white, interspersed among the bright green leaves. This botanical transformation is a great reminder for me of the miraculous transformation that took place in that tomb 2000 years ago. Over the course of three days Jesus was transformed from a violet, bloody, lifeless form until finally on Sunday morning he emerged from the tomb of death in a white burst of life! What a big difference yesterday, today and tomorrow can make in our lives!!

This year has been no exception with our “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” bushes” in full bloom this week leading up to Easter. It has been a constant reminder to me the big difference between Good Friday and Easter Sunday; between the dark moments of my life and the bright joy of seeing God’s pure light transform them into something wondrous! Yes, what a BIG difference yesterday, today and tomorrow can make!! HAPPY EASTER TOMORROW!!

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How Great is His Love!

03/22/2013

“Thank-you, you did a great job cleaning that window!” You could see the joy that flooded this young boy’s heart as he looked up at me! He quickly asked if he could continue helping! We assessed his cleaning cloth, and determined he could clean off a few more benches. He was bouncing off of the wall with excitement to be able to help clean the benches! Soon his Mother called him, he was reluctant to go, but we encouraged him to be obedient to his mom. “Thank-you so much for helping us,” I echoed once more! He ran out of the room to his waiting mother with whom he shared all that he had done to help! Something so easy to do as to respond with two words, “Thank-You” can evoke a deep sense of joy to know you are needed and loved. Is it not amazing how the Lord created each one of us? We belong to Him and yet many times we do not recognize this amazing and profound idea!

As we watched this young man during the next two days, it was evident that he truly loved his little brother. He would carry him, play with him, laugh with him and console him when he was unhappy. He was there for his little brother no matter the circumstances nor how difficult the task. His little brother could not verbally say “Thank-You”, but it is evident in the way he is attached to his older brother, that there is a close bond! Ephesians 3:16-19 came to mind as these children enjoyed the blessing of brotherly love even though they might not recognize it or be able to express it in words. Nevertheless, these little ones are already learning what it means to be “rooted and established in love” in the family.

Our hope is that they will begin to see it in the whole family of God as they become integrated into that broader family as they learn to let Christ dwell in their hearts by faith. Coming to grasp just how much God loves us and wants us to “be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God, is something that takes a lifetime and still not fully comprehend. Our prayer for these young children in the family of God is summed up in Paul’s prayer here for us all: “I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.”

It reminds me of the little song that children in Sunday School enjoy singing! “Deep and Wide, there’s a fountain flowing deep and wide”! But then, can we truly understand how deep and wide His love for us really is when even Paul says that this love surpasses knowledge? But it is definitely the challenge and joy of the Christian life to seek to know His love more and more each day without ever being able to deplete it or know it fully. And it is our second joy to be able to see our African brothers and sisters begin the journey of discovering this unsurpassable and inexhaustible love of their Father, many whom have never known this kind of love before! What a great joy when they begin this journey as little ones like those boys in the photo, so that they have their whole life ahead to discover this great love of Christ for them and in them that surpasses knowledge!As we watched this young man during the next two days, it was evident that he truly loved his little brother. He would carry him, play with him, laugh with him and console him when he was unhappy. He was there for his little brother no matter the circumstances nor how difficult the task. His little brother could not verbally say “Thank-You”, but it is evident in the way he is attached to his older brother, that there is a close bond! Ephesians 3:16-19 came to mind as these children enjoyed the blessing of brotherly love even though they might not recognize it or be able to express it in words. Nevertheless, these little ones are already learning what it means to be “rooted and established in love” in the family.

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Mali update

01/17/2013

January 17, 2013

Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire

This morning you may have noticed in the front headlines news that there have been foreign hostages taken at a gas facility in Algeria, due to a struggle that has been going on in the neighboring country of Mali. We are watching this situation closely; we are not in danger and ask you to please be in prayer for the Malian people. As we write it has been reported that some of the hostages have escaped.

Just a brief update on what is happening; for approximately one month there have been Islamist extremists who have been pushing to take control of Mali. This past week they made some major advances towards the capitol, Bamako. They were within approximately 350 kilometers or 176 miles of their target when the French government sent in troops to block this from happening. WHY is this happening??

The reason is Mali is a very large country and it borders 7 countries, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, which if the “Rebels from the Movement for Oneness and Jihad”- would take Mali, they would then have easy access to the surrounding countries. Thus in a reaction to the French coming to aid the Malian government, these rebels have taken foreign hostages to show their dissatisfaction! There has been a lot of discussion about the fact that Mali is a former colony of France, thus there is still an interest in what happens in this country.

From our point of view, it would appear that the West Africa nations and the French government are coming together in action to help the Malian government and its people. PLEASE pray for the people of Mali and that a peaceful resolution can be found to end this very tense and difficult time.

If you would like to follow this from a good source we would recommend you read or listen to BBC news. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/

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A Few Firsts Before the First ! (January 2013)

01/11/2013

As we were looking over our schedule before Christmas we notice that we had the possibility of doing something we had never done before! While Laura and Lee lived here in Africa, they would come home for Christmas and those were our special times as a family. However, this year, we did not have Laura and Lee, for Christmas, but we were pleased to have Naz and Jen Akossi and their children here with us for Christmas. That was a first for us.

In Côte d’Ivoire most of the Church of God congregations celebrate New Years by having a “mini veillier”, some people might call it a watch night service. We usually start at 9pm with singing, testimonies and prayer. About 11:30pm we begin a time of prayer seeking the Lord’s desire for the New Year. Well, this year we realized that we have never celebrated New Years in the Northern part of Côte d’Ivoire. So, we went to Korhogo on Sunday afternoon, the 30^th of December to be with our brothers and sisters in the North. That was another first for us.

On Monday we drove out to two villages and saw two pastors. We first headed to the village of Kolivogo. The Pastor of the Church of God in Kolivogo is Pastor Josue. We had not seen him since we left Côted’Ivoire one and a half (1 ½ years). Pastor Josue and wife have a one year old baby that we had not met. Many ofyou may remember that Pastor Josue became very sick last year about this time due to meningitis. It was exciting to see how well Josue is doing after being so sick. Josue’s brother was also at the house so we got to meet him. Josue’s share many testimonies of how God was and is working in that area of the country. But, one testimony really touched our hearts. Josue shared with us that his sister has given her heart to the Lord and it happened as a result of her seeing how God had saved Josue’s life. He shared that he has one more uncle he would like to see come to know Jesus. This was another first for us, getting to meet Samuel and to see Pastor Josue and his wife Naomi during the New Year’s holiday.

We them went to the village of Nouplie. We found the leader of the church there with his son, who was working on a balaphones that he had built. He played it for us and it was a joy to hear him play as the base notes resounded off of the other houses. They explained to us that in the past the balaphones were used like a telephone, contacting different persons in the village to make sure everyone was ok. Everyone had a sound that was played on the balaphones to represent them. It reminded us of how God knows our names and He has His way of talking to each one of us. We talked and share with a small group of people who began to come and join us.

We then headed back into Korhogo to see Pastor Samuel, who is recuperating from a very serious motorcycle accident. He is still relearning how to walk again after have a plate put into his leg just above his knee. Please continue to pray for Pastor Samuel as he works through the healing process!!

Happy New Year 2013

Meilleurs Voeux

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Update on Mihsills

12/23/2012

Hello, Friends, This blog is long overdue: five months! A lot has happened since we got appointed as missionaries to Cote d'Ivoire. In July, we took a trip to Colorado with our South Meridian Youth for the International Youth Convention. On our return from Colorado we were able to visit a few campmeetings and share our story with people at the camps. First stop was at the Yellow Creek Lake campmeeting during the last weekend of July. The speaker for the camp was Dr. James Lewis. We also volunteered to help out with youth activities along side Mike Snyder, Crystal Snyder, Time and Kit Bush. We had a tractor ride in the evening; it was a gorgeous night sky out in the country. We also had the opportunity to share at the Akron Church of God. Bob had to head back to work on Monday, but Jenny headed straight over to Ohio for the Payne, Ohio camp meeting. In early August, we went to St Louis, Michigan campmeeting and spent Saturday afternoon sharing with the young adult class about missions and on Sunday we were introduced during the service.

Jenny was invited by the CWC ladies to West Frankfort, IL for the Southern Illinois campmeeting and had a wonderful experience sharing and making new friends.

In mid-August Jenny went back to work and the new school year got off to a good, but busy start.

In the the fall, we had a few opportunities to build new partnerships with some churches here in the Midwest. First, we visited Ithaca Church of God in Michigan in October. We had a wonderful time with the pastor; our host Dee and the congregation were awesome. The first evening, we shared our stories with a group of friends around the camp fire, followed by some good chili. On Sunday, we were given the opportunity to share in Sunday school and in the service, Jenny delivered a great sermon about making disciples "as we are going." After the service we enjoyed a delicious potluck dinner with the congregation.

Two weekends later, we were at Tillman Road Church of God in Fort Wayne, Indiana. As we were driving on Sunday morning trying to find the church, we saw our names on the church signboard out front in bold letters: "Welcome Bobby and Jenny Mihsill." The sign had just made our morning even wonderful, knowing that the Church was welcoming us so warmly!and we will be building newer relationships. We both shared during the Sunday School hour and during the morning service. This was followed with lunch, good conversations with beautiful people.

Seven days later, we joined the Fairmont Church of God for an African night dinner. We had googled map the directions to the church and when we arrived at the location, there was no church! We drove in circles looking for the church and later called the church . What had happened was, there was the same exact street name at a town nearby and that is where the map took us. We had spent driving 45 minutes more that we should have, but we did finally get to the church. It was a great evening, with African food that was prepared, African games, stories and some African Trivia. We got to meet some wonderful people who have hearts for Africa and we enjoyed seeing Sherman and Kay Critser at the dinner!

A week later we traveled to West Frankfort, Illinois for their Faith Promise Sunday. On the drive there, a bonus was the one hour time gain and the beautiful sunset. We had a wonderful service on Sunday morning with Bob preaching and met with some very welcoming people. The fellowship continued with a great Thanksgiving lunch!

Our travels have slowed down a bit near the holidays, but we'll be up and on the road again come January!

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The Three Wise Men and their Wives ??

12/20/2012

December 20, 2012 – The Three Wise men and their Wives??

Last evening we had a Pastor’s wife and daughter come for a little visit. While Larry was giving a few items to the Pastor’s wife, LeAnn and the daughter began talking about the Christmas tree. LeAnn shared with the daughter that it really is a “Jesus Tree” as the colors represent for us Jesus. The green represents eternal Life and the white lights represent the purity of Jesus, He is God’s son and the red ribbons represent the blood that Jesus shed for our salvation. The ornaments represent our Journey with Him. There are balaphones from Côte d’Ivoire, the sleds made by Haitian orphans from the “House of Blessings” in 1987 and tin figures and baskets from Kenya plus more from different places in the United States and around the world. Then when her mother came in she explained the Jesus Tree to her mother in her own words.

We then went to look at our Nativity set from Côte d’Ivoire together. We talked about the Birth of Jesus and its importance in our lives. As we looked we talked about the different figurines, the angel wearing a red foulard (headscarf) in place of a halo, Mary and Joseph in bright African dress, the lone shepherd offering a lamb to the Lamb of God, and three (3) wise men in elegant boubous and Islamic caps bearing gifts for a king. But wait! There were more figurines than the usual number. There were four women in the background! Oh, yes these were indeed very wise men as they brought their wives along with them. Why you might ask! Well, looking at the loads on their heads you will notice that they have everything needed for the long journey. One is carrying water, another one is carrying wood and another is carrying food. The last woman is carrying a mortar and pestle. They were prepared for the long journey!! However the figurine that most caught our attention was the baby Jesus laying on a bright pagne (African Cloth)! He is at the heart of this African scene of life and worship combined. There was an air of normality and yet at the same time something unique, holy and worshipful.

It was fun to look at the Nativity through the eyes of our visitors as they understood through the lenses of their own culture as if this was a normal everyday scene in African life. Women carrying loads on their heads, travelers bearing gifts, friends celebrating a new birth, life carried out with animals and people all together, people in brightly decorated robes and a moment of pure worship in the midst of daily life! While you won’t see many nativity sets in African homes, you will find more and more African homes becoming their own nativity scenes – holy places where daily life and worship mingle in bright African style and exuberance, where men, women, children and animals live out their lives in the presence of the One who gave them the mostly costly gift of all – eternal life!

From our African home to yours, wherever it may be, we wish you a blessed season of worship of the One Giver of eternal life even in the busy scenes of your daily life however you may live it out!

From one wise man and his wiser wife, Larry and LeAnn

(Today is our 27^th wedding anniversary!!)

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Joy

11/05/2012

It has been interesting the last several days the idea of JOY has been either in our devotions or in conversations with students or pastors. So, we would like to throw the question to you what is or what is not JOY to you? Is there a difference between Joy and Happiness?

"Restlessness and impatience change nothing except our peace and joy. Peace does not dwell in outward things, but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands."
- Elisabeth Elliot

"Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day."
- Henri J.M. Nouwen

Happiness is external; Joy is internal.

Happiness is born in the mind; Joy is born in the heart.

Happiness comes from humans; Joy comes from God.

Happiness is fleeting, Joy is sustaining because of its roots.

Nehemiah 8:10 tells us that the Joy of the Lord is our strength, it would seem clear that Joy comes from God. Paul tells us in Galatians 5 that we should live by the Spirit. What does that mean? We are given a list of Fruit of the Spirit and joy follows right behind love and next comes peace. We wonder is it possible if we have love, joy and peace that come from God, we can exhibit the other fruit of the Spirit? Meaning that we can be patient, have kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, what do you think?

This term that we accepted to be overseas we knew that we would be really empty nesters since we would be leaving both Laura and Lee in the States. This is a new reality for us since they have both been with us during their childhood through high school. (Meaning we have all been on the same continent.) We have to admit that the reality of leaving them behind in the United States has not been easy at times, but we are learning to watch them grow in the Lord, and it is pure joy to see them recognize when He has been there and guided them through unique situations and protected them from danger. Recently, our daughter Laura shared with us that she went to have her car serviced and was asked to come look at a belt on her car. The gentlemen asked her, “Can you tell me how many cracks you see in this belt?” Laura replied to him that she could not as there were too many to count. He gently told her that at anytime this belt could break and her car would be irreparable. What a wonderful reminder of God’s faithfulness and protection over the special gift of our daughter Laura.

The little jingle comes to mind as well: JOY comes from putting Jesus first, Others second and Yourself last!! As we are quickly approaching Thanksgiving and Christmas there are many songs that entertain the idea of Joy --- i.e. Joy to the World. Where do we place Jesus, others and ourselves?

We would enjoy hearing your thoughts on JOY. What brings you JOY?

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