Past couple of days...

Hello everyone,

It's about noon on Monday here, and we are currently in the town of Choma. On Friday we got to visit a microfinance institution in Lusaka and were able to go visit some of their clients and got to talk with them about how Microfinance has impacted there life. After that we went over to MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Associates) and heard about the work they are doing here. Overall it was a great day. It was really good to be able to hear from the microfinance clients to get a better perspective of how microfinance really works instead of just reading about it in books.

Saturday we made our way out to Choma where we are currently at. Since being here we have been reviewing the material that we will be teaching in the villages when we go there tomorrow. I'm feeling more and more prepared so that is good. Living in the village for the next 9 days is going to be a big challenge so I appreciate all of your prayers.

I was surprised to see how developed Lusaka was, while not as advanced as a typical city in America it was miles beyond what I would have envisioned. What's interesting is that the city just stops and the dirt roads begin. Ron Herr, the man that is our main contact here and is taking us everywhere we need to go works for Compassionate ministries. Which is affiliated with the BIC Church and has lived here for the past 7 years. He has been a great guide both in getting us where we need to go and with the culture. One thing that has struck me is that many people here will have cell phones or a tv and not clean water. Ron has said he has spoke with the people specifically about this issue and the people have said they value their cell phones more than they do clean water. It's somewhat puzzling and I'm not sure as to how to react or feel about the situation. We have been told that some people in the villages will have a cell phone or even a tv that they will run off of a battery! It's something that I am having a hard time wrapping my mind around.

That's all I have for now. I'll post hopefully soon after we're out of the villages. Thank you all for your support and prayers

In love