Tuesday evening we were invited to the Fishers home for dinner.  We did not know that they had invited other ‘old’ friends that we have known for over 40 years as well as new friends.  What a wonderful and pleasant evening.  The food as usual was plenteous with curry, fish pies, chicken, lots of veggies and two beautiful, delicious cakes for dessert!  It was wonderful to hear the voices sing praising God in song after the meal. Such beautiful harmony. There is nothing quite like worshiping with the family of believers.

Wednesday, the director of TWR Swaziland was here from his home in South Africa.  He planned a braai for the staff in the evening.

The braai ended early for those who needed to catch buses or taxis home so we were able to attend  Wednesday night prayer meeting at church as we like to do.  After church we had butternut squash soup and vetkoek (fat cake), a type of fried bread.

Thursday, we went to staff meeting in the morning. and after staff meeting Larry went out to the site and I came home. On the way home one of the men saw a snake by the side of the road.  It was not very lively and one of the men got out of the car and started annoying it by rolling little rocks up against it.  It eventually got  irritated and sta

Can you spot the python?

rted to come after him.  He jumped into the car and they reversed away so the snake wouldn’t crawl up into the engine space.  The 9 ft long python scurried off into the grass.  It was a bit thick in the middle, so they assumed that it had recently eaten and was a bit sluggish because of that.

Thursday evening we ate at home and enjoyed some of the leftovers from Sunday’s meal that were sent home with us.

Friday morning, I went to the ladies Bible Study.  This week we met at Jaya’ s home.  She prepared a small feast for tea. A good study and great fellowship.  I will certainly miss these ladies when we leave.  In the evening, we went to the Schillers for a pizza  supper. Their home schooled children  put on a mini concert, singing old hymns.  Some were different words set to the old tunes. We enjoyed hearing them.  Also played some games with the kids.

Saturday, we ran some last minute errands and packed.  In the evening we enjoyed supper with the Clarke family.  The Kimber family who had just returned from home assignment in England, also was there. We enjoyed visiting and eating the good food.

Sunday, Father’s Day, we had a great worship service at church and the Pastor brought a great message from Psalm 78.  Teach your children  to trust God’s Word above the words, culture and tradition of men.  Be a godly example to your children and grandchildren.  Perpetuate God’s truth from generation to generation.

After church we ate dinner with Ruth Crowie and her son and wife.  We had a good time of fellowship over the good food.

Saturday and Sunday afternoon we packed for our return to the States.   We are looking forward to going home and seeing our grandchildren and meeting the new little one, Arthur.  But we are a little sad that there is still so much to do here and the need is great. We kind of feel as though we need a few more weeks to wind things up properly.  We are His servants and are willing to go where and when He wants us.  We are thankful that we have been able to fill in where needed and pray that we have been a help and encouragement.

Larry and Salema in the antenna tuning hut.

Larry’s week consisted of completing the fabrication of the seventh inductor (out of the ten needed) and making all the connections possible using 15mm (~5/8″) and 22mm (~7/8″) copper tubing.  The remaining three inductors are being fabricated in South Africa and we learned that the first, of the three, will be shipped next week.  The medium wave (AM) upgrade is now about 90% complete.  All the capacitors and inductors have been preset according to the schematic.  On Friday, Larry taught Klaus how to use an operating impedance bridge to precisely adjust the inductors and capacitors in one of the five networks. With Graham Kimber back, hopefully he and Klaus can install the remaining three inductors and continue setting up the remaining networks.  Larry plans to be available to assist them remotely.  TWR Swaziland plans to increase the power to the antenna from 50,000 to 100,000 watts at a dedication ceremony in late August with Lauren Libby, the president of Trans World Radio, in attendance.

Morning sun on the bougainvillea.

It is cold!  I think that winter has arrived in Swaziland.  The concrete walls and ceramic tile floor hold the cold and feel very cold when there is no heat in the house and the sun is covered by clouds.  It is 17.8 C or 64 F. I know that is not very cold and some of you would think that is wonderful, but there is no place where it is warmer, except in bed!  The local people wear their knitted hats,  hoodies, heavy winter coats and gloves in this weather.  I put on my sweat shirt and two pairs of socks.  Larry adds a flannel shirt as a jacket on these cool days.  Usually by late morning or early afternoon it warms up enough that some layers can be shed.

The week has been pretty much the same as previous weeks.  Trips to town and visiting with people in shops, trying to be friendly to those whose only feature that can been seen are their eyes,  Bible study with some wonderful ladies and just enjoying being in Swaziland.  One shop owner, who had not seemed friendly in previous years’ visits,  started a conversation asking me where I was from.  He told me that he was going to Chicago to visit relatives.  He said that he planned to be back in Swaziland before the  U.S. elections.  He didn’t want to get caught in that!  He seemed to be of the opinion that neither candidate was a good choice.  He suggested that we might want to move back to Swaziland.  I did not disagree with any of his comments.

Larry spent the first part of the week modifying inductors (coils) that were removed from the old 1960 model AM transmitter because they were useful for upgrading the AM antenna system from 50,000 to 100,000 watt.   After the modifications were completed, these inductors were installed in the two antenna tuning huts.  Instead of using wires to make the connections, copper tubing up to 22mm (about 7/8″) in diameter has to be used to carry the required radio frequency current (up to 90 amps).

On Tuesday several used inductors, that were located earlier by James Burnett, arrived from South Africa.  Only one, of the four, was of sufficient current carrying capability to be usable for the upgrade.  After Larry did some calculations, he determined that this one inductor was actually large enough to make two more of the needed inductors for the upgrade, if the large coil was cut into two coils in exactly the right place.  This cut was done on Thursday, but now the inductor supporting frame had to be rebuilt to make two frames instead of one.  By Friday the larger of the, now two, inductors had its rebuilt frame and was installed and connected in the main tuning hut.  The second of the two inductors will require more work as most of the original support frame was used to make the frame for the first inductor.  That will be part of next week’s work!

Sunday was a great day of worship in song,  and a challenge from a visiting pastor. It was cause for lively discussion around the dinner table.  Among the many points, one that I took away was that we need to let our light shine outside the church building where the darkness is.  Also that the building is not the church, but we, the people are.   I think that is important because so many people do not seem to understand that the church is people.  I have even had Sunday School material that put the emphasis  on the building rather than the people!

Sunday we enjoyed a huge, delicious meal at the Middletons along with Pastor Deon and his wife Berenice and ‘Auntie’ Ivy. This was no ordinary meal!  We had ox tail curry, biryani, spaghetti, rice, chicken, roast potatoes, several veggies,  sliced beets, and more. It was wonderful.  Doreen sent enough home with us for several more meals.  The meal ended with 4 different desserts and then tea and coffee.  I think we finished eating around 4:00.  We had a great time!!

Wild flower bouquet. These flowers grow wild all over. They are so pretty.

Twenty days until we board the plane for the l-o-n-g trip back to the U.S.  Our time here has passed so quickly.  We have kept busy with the jobs given to us that will help to spread the Gospel to those who have not heard, to those who need to hear God’s words to meet the needs of their hearts and lives.  It has been encouraging to speak personally to people who listen to TWR every day. All who we have talked to have said they would like to hear  more teaching more hours of the day.  To hear from missionaries in parts of Africa where TWR is their source of encouragement and teaching as they serve Him,  people who meet around their radio to worship together as there is no  church,  changed hearts, these are the reasons why we are willing to leave our families and home and serve wherever God wants us.

The 7:00 a.m. drive into town. This begins where we turn out onto the highway and for the 2 miles into town.  Traffic is at a crawl from about 6:30 to 8:30 am on weekdays.

It is not unusual, as I walk through town, to enter a shop and hear Christian music and/or Biblical teaching.  Sometimes it is in English and sometimes in SiSwati, the local language or Zulu which most Swazis also speak and understand. These programs are broadcast by Voice of the Church, a local station TWR helped to start.  It is local pastors and teachers and is run by the Swazis.  TWR personnel provide technical assistance when needed. It is amazing how far reaching the testimony of this local station is.  People who travel through or near Swaziland hear the Gospel broadcast by this station.  With the heavy Muslim influence in this area, to have a strong voice for the true living God is important.

Shops

Wednesday was a busy day.  I did laundry in the morning and then decided to accept a friend’s offer to ride to Mbabane with her and her family for piano lessons.  That meant taking all the clothes off the line and hanging them on a clothes rack.  I did this so they would not be hanging in the sun all day and because there is a very real chance that they might not be there when I return if they are left outside.  The clothes did dry on the rack just fine and I only had to hang the towels back out when I got home.

We started to Mbabane around 11:30 for the children’s 12:30 piano lesson.  The place was located in the hills near Mbabane and is called Brackenhill Lodge, a bed and breakfast.

It is a very pretty location, quiet and has hiking into the higher mountains or hills.  We explored a bit while the children had their lesson and had a snack to eat.  We left there and went to one of the big malls, The Gables Shopping Centre in Ezulwini, where Katja and the children were meeting a  young man to teach him a bit of German as he is planning to go to Germany in November.  He brought the kids some clay from his art class and showed them how to make things from it and said that he would teach them drawing as well.  I walked to the post office and mailed some cards and did a little shopping.

Larry also had a busy day.  The men picked up some of the parts for the antenna upgrade, which had arrived in the country the night before. Larry spent the day putting together capacitor assemblies — nine assemblies with a total of 21 large capacitors. 

Wednesday evening, we again met at church for Bible study and prayer meeting.  Not a huge group, but people who truly love the Lord.  It is such a blessing to hear the prayers of these saints.

Thursday, Larry fabricated all the copper straps needed to connect the capacitor assemblies to ground or to each other.  On Friday, he and Salema transported all the capacitor assemblies and some inductors (coils) out to the antenna tuning huts and began the process of making connections.  They are still waiting for 5 more inductors to arrive from South Africa.  Please pray for speedy delivery of these needed inductors.  After these arrive and are connected, the final adjustments can be made and the transmitter power can be increased from 50,000 to 100,000 watts.

Saturday, Larry and I went to the Market in town. They had some neat wire cars for sale.  We didn’t buy any because our space and pocketbook are limited and these were fancy ones,  but we did take pictures.

We also talked to some of the people at the market who remembered us from previous visits.  It is good to make those contacts and have that relationship. It opens doors to share the Gospel with those who don’t know the saving Grace of God and to be an encouragement to those who do know Jesus.

Sunday, we took Ruth to the candle factory for lunch.  We all ordered our favorites.  Ruth and I had fish and chips and Larry had chicken strips and chips and then we ‘window’ shopped.

While we were eating, we noticed a large group from The Luke Commission gathering for lunch and worship.  The Luke Commission is a medical group that travels to areas where medical help is difficult to reach.  They travel with medical equipment and staff and can treat most things that do not require hospitalization or specialists.  They do have specialists who come from the States from time to time to help.   Recently, they had an ophthalmologist come from the States to do cataract surgeries.  They share the Gospel as they help physically.

We are thankful that our son Philip and his family arrived safely in Idaho.  It was a 10 day trip, pulling a big camping trailer.  They encountered heavy winds with some bad weather and an over-heated engine that slowed them down, but they were safe.  Philip begins his new job tomorrow, Tuesday, June 7.  We were so grateful to hear that they had arrived safely.

These past days have been rather uneventful.  We are continuing to do what God has for us to do here in Swaziland and we are so thankful we are able to be here.

The sunrise from our house.

Friday, I attended a ladies Bible study.  They are studying  ‘Peter,  Learning to Be Like Jesus’.  I spent some time this morning studying the next lesson.    I didn’t finish the lesson because I tend to find something interesting and study that particular thought before I go on.  I have one page written in a notebook from my morning study. The thought that I pursued this morning was from John 13:34 “…love one another, even as I have loved you….”   Jesus loves ALL people. No matter how dirty, hurtful, sinful, proud, arrogant, etc. they are.  He loves us so much that He suffered on the cross for us.  Love will be expressed in deeds for the unlovable as well as the lovable.   It will be an overflow of our love for Christ, to bring Him glory, not ourselves and a love without end.

My notebook contained much more than just this, but these are the main thoughts for today.   Now I need to go back to the study book and fill in the blanks.

Saturday we spent a delightful evening with another TWR family, the Clarks, and her parents from Port Elizabeth.  We enjoyed the wonderful meal and fellowship.  It is interesting that we and her parents have mutual friends in South Africa.  It truly is a small world where God’s children are concerned.

Sunday we had a very nice time of worship in song before Larry shared his testimony and a challenge during the morning service.

After church, we stopped at a place near our house where they sell grilled chicken, mealie pap

All this food for less than $3.00! Not for each serving, but for both of us. Right now, it is probably closer to $2.50 for all this food.

and salad and brought some home for dinner.  It was very tasty.  After we ate, we decided to visit the glass blowing factory.  They were not blowing glass on Sunday, but did have things for sale and we did go to the observation deck to look at the furnace where they fire and blow the glass.  We enjoyed looking around, but saved our money and didn’t purchase anything.

Today, Tuesday, a stack of parts are supposed to arrive late this evening from South Africa for the AM antenna upgrade.  Larry is anxious to get started doing the work after spending the past weeks planning, designing, finding a machine shop capable of making and ordering the parts.  There are other parts yet to come and he is hoping they will be ready soon.  It seems like things, that take a few days to get done in Elkhart, take weeks or months here.  He would love to have this project very near completion or even finished before we leave.

Also today, the missionaries, that work at the site with Larry, had work to do in town so Larry rode to the site with the Swazi technician.  They decided to repair the 100,000-watt shortwave antenna that Larry designed and built in 1984.  One small bolt had failed after 32 years of service.  Although the failure was such that the antenna performance was not compromised, it affected the appearance of the antenna.  After completing the repair, Larry asked the technician, “If we don’t tell anyone, how long will it be before the repair was noticed?” The technician replied, “One or two months!”  [So if you are reading this, please don’t ‘let the cat out of the bag’!]

TWR antennas at sunset. The antenna that was repaired is connected to the shorter towers behind the curtain antenna which is in the front of this photo.

Tuesday evening we decided to Skype with Samuel’s family and see how they were doing. We had just  finished talking to Larry’s mom via Skype and just felt we should make that call to Sam’s family.  We were unable to contact them, so decided that naps and work were in progress.  Later, I was able to chat with Sam on the computer and found out that the new baby was going to be born on Wednesday, May 25, rather than June 1 and they had been busy with those arrangements.  Apparently, there were some  tests that were questionable at Angelique’s last check-up, so the doctor decided that it was prudent to deliver the baby a bit early.

This evening we received a text message that grandson number seven was born at 10:51 a.m. He weighed 6 lbs 13 oz and was 19 inches long. He was giving a lusty cry when we talked to his daddy shortly after his birth.   All appear to be doing well, tired, but blessed.  Last night when we first spoke to Sam, they had not decided on a name, but in a later conversation he said that they had decided on Arthur William.  Arthur has a big brother and sister, ages 4 & 2.  So he will have some good teachers to watch over him and teach him what he needs to know. 🙂

We had a good evening at Bible Study and continued the study in James before having prayer time together.

Behold, children are a gift of the LORD. The fruit of the womb is a reward.  Psalms. 127:3

Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers. Proverbs 17:6