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August 1991 Newsletter
COLOMBIAN CHRISTIAN MISSION
Dale and Jeanie Meade
In the jungle and prairie of Southeastern Colombia
Volume 19, Issue 8 August, 1990
LAKE JAMES
This year, for the first time, I attended Lake James School of Missions. I had heard about Lake James for as long as I can remember. Its impact on the missionary movement in our brotherhood is legendary. Perhaps no other event has encouraged so many people to become actively involved in the Restoration Movement's missionary outreach as has Lake James School of Missions. I had never attended because it is held each year around the first week in August. that is precisely the week in which we are traveling to or from Colombia. This year, due to the expiration of our cedulas, or Colombian identification cards, we needed to travel to Colombia a bit later than normal.
Even then, the School of Missions would fall only about two weeks after we returned from the North American Christian Convention. I was swamped with office work and so I planned to attend Lake Jammed only for the days when I was to speak. Since I rarely can travel with my family, I planned to take Susy and Alex with me. "It will be a bunch of old people" they complained. We would all have many misconceptions to dispel.
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A missionary motel: camping is still the cheapest way for a family to travel.
I was surprised by the number of churches represented and by their geographical spread. People had come from as far away as Florida. Many of our supporting churches had members present. My kids were pleased to find so many young people. Both found new friends almost immediately. In fact, almost every age group was equally represented. There were so many people there that I had gone to college with that it was almost like a class reunion.
Tuesday evening I was scheduled to speak. Since I had so much work at home and had a trip to Colombia looming on the horizon, I planned to leave shortly after my part in the program was finished. By then , I was enjoying the spirit of the program so much that I decided to stay for another day or two. On Thursday I asked the kids if they were ready to leave. Both begged to stay until the end. The week was so enjoyable and so uplifting spiritually that it was not hard for them to convince me.
The week passed quickly. On Saturday morning I was packing up the display and getting ready to return home. Even then I found myself plotting a way to have our paperwork in Colombia fall due a later date so that I could attend Lake James School of Missions again next year. Maybe you should plan on including it as a part of your Summer next year.
TRIP TO COLOMBIA
As I type this, I am surrounded by the hustle and bustle of packing. Even though we plan to be in Colombia for only about two to three weeks, it is a major trip. This year we will have more paperwork to do than normal, so we are praying for God's speed in getting it all done. I am scheduled to speak at St. Louis Christian College the first week in September.
We decided to take the kids this year, even though we did not get quite enough money for their plane tickets. We did find a cheaper rate that lowered the price a bit. A charge card made up the difference. We felt that it was important to take them along. They are forgetting their Spanish, and that will make it hard for them to adjust next year. We also needed to do a little bit of paperwork for them, and it will be easier if they are along. They have not been too thrilled about going back to live and so we wanted them to see the area where we plan to relocate.
While in Colombia, we will be traveling extensively. We must do some paperwork in Bogota in regards to our visas. I have to go down to Villavicencio in order to file and pay our income tax. Next we will have to return to Bogota to work a little more on visas. By this time, if all has gone well, we want to exit the country via Cartagena, the city where we plan to work upon our return to Colombia. This will give the kids a chance to see where they might be living. We would like them to see what the houses are like and the schools they might attend.
Lord, willing, we will be in Colombia when you read this letter. We have three favors to ask of you. First, please pray for our safety as we travel in what is a very dangerous part of the world. Second, please pray that we are able to accomplish all that we need to do in the time that we have available. One document, our cedulas or Colombian I.D. cards may prove to be a problem. Pray that they be granted quickly and without delay. Finally, we are concerned about the expenses of the trip. We try never to charge things, but there was no other way to take the children this year. The two younger ones had not been back to Colombia since we came home on this furlough. We felt that they really needed to go back for a while. Pray that God provides the funds to cover these expenses. I will be looking forward to sharing the news about Colombia., and what the Lord is doing there when we return.
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Dale and Alex take in the view form the Continental Divide during our recent trip to the North American Christian Convention.