Epiphany - God Reveals Himself to Us

Greetings to you all, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Before we begin this month's update, we want to extend a sincere "thank you" to all of you who took the time to wish us Christmas and New Year's greetings. We appreciated your cards and electronic messages and are thankful that you are keeping our family in your thoughts and prayers.

Throughout this season of Epiphany, we have been reflecting on the different ways that God reveals himself to us. God reveals himself differently to each person. God revealed himself to the magi with a star announcing the birth of Jesus. At the baptism of Jesus, God made his presence known with a voice from heaven and a dove. Sometimes, however, God simply makes his presence known through other people.

On the morning of January 2, our family was preparing to leave for a trip out of town when I (Dan) received a phone call requiring me to come to the office. This is not an unusual occurrence but knowing that these things take a little longer than one might normally expect, I told my family that we would be delayed slightly, but I would be home as soon as I could.

As I arrived at the Lutheran Centre, I overheard the security guard telling a visitor that the office was closed, and he should come back next week. I then overheard the visitor call my name, and as he approached, he reintroduced himself to me. Dr. Michael Mwambola had traveled from the southern highlands of Tanzania to visit the LMC office. We had been trying to reach him before Christmas (I have mentioned previously how challenging communication can be in this country, especially to the rural areas.) Michael had been on the LMC list of eligible international scholarship recipients for several years. His scholarship was approved for a one-year Tropical Medicine course in Liverpool, England beginning January 6th. Our office had already purchased his plane ticket, but he had not yet secured his visa from the British Embassy in Dar es Salaam. We immediately arranged for transport to Dar es Salaam, but securing the appointment with the British Embassy was up to him.

After we returned to Arusha and the office reopened, my first concern was whether or not Michael secured his visa and would be able to travel on the 7th as we had scheduled for him. He was told that the embassy needed some fairly detailed financial information from the sponsor and from our bank. We immediately rescheduled his flight. After several failed fax attempts, and many emails back and forth to the UK, Germany, and Tanzania, it appeared that everything was finally ready to go on the 9th. Michael said he would stop by my office before he left.

When he arrived on January 10th, he simply wanted to thank me. His wife accompanied him, even though she would be staying in Tanzania during his one-year study program. She wanted to see him leave. Michael had never traveled out of Africa, so I advised him that one of the first things he might need to buy with his living expense money was a warm coat! He and his wife thanked me many times, for helping to make his scholarship and travel a reality. When I was processing documents for him, I felt that I was simply doing my job. Before he left, we closed our meeting in prayer. When we parted we hugged each other and promised to meet again. Indeed, God reveals himself to us not only through stars and voices, but through other people just like you and me.

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Dan, Cathy, Sarah, Emily and Grace Smith
PO BOX 15128
Arusha
Tanzania
http://www.goodshepherdkettering.com/pages/mission.html
smithfam91@yahoo.com
or
missionaries@goodshepherdkettering.com
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