Here are some recent pics of our time in Mada.
http://s1167.photobucket.com/albums/q622/pplemens/

Working for the Weekend

We've had a few days of down time to settle in. Friday we spent at the house playing and unpacking, sorting and resting. A missionary family from the south of the island arrived in the afternoon as they are heading home to France for the birth of their child. The evening ended with a family movie night huddled around the computer to watch "The Incredibles" on DVD. We even had popcorn!

Saturday we joined together with two families for a trip into Tana for a few supplies. Today we all went to church at Tana City Church. The church is just across the street from the US Embassy. It's an English speaking service filled with ExPats as well as Malagasy people interested in learning English.

We shared lunch at another French Restaurant (what a treat!) and went back to the Patrelli's house to relax. The Patrelli's are a couple from Brazil that have been in Mada about 8 months. The whole team, including two brand new members from Canada, wound up coming over, playing Mexican Train dominoes, and whipping up a great dinner.

Tomorrow we go to MCA to meet the Principal and discuss enrolling the kid's in school for the year. 

Matthew 11:28-30

New International Version (NIV)

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I'm finding myself needing to learn so many new things here in Mada. The language, the customs, the bus routes...where to buy supplies, where not to be after dark, which adapter to use in order to plug in the hair dryer (missed that one).

Trying to learn this much at one time is exhausting! Especially when I feel as if it is up to me to learn it.

Then I hear the words of the Master Teacher, "learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul(s)."

What is Jesus trying to teach you? Are you in need of rest? His yoke is easy. His burden is light.

Had a group of neighborhood children come over for playtime and a snack. You can see Salufu, our day watch, is having as much fun as the kids.

http://youtu.be/i1lL90pRotY

Entering the City

Many of you have requested information on our mailing address. Here are some things to remember when mailing us.

1. Big boxes probably won't get to us. They cost a lot to ship and we have to pay customs on the contents. Customs inspectors often steal from these packages during the inspection process.  The mail system is improving and smaller boxes are now making it through on a more regular basis. However, Customs may still apply.
2. Large Padded Envelopes and SMALL Boxes usually do make it through with little problems.
3. Regular Mail will almost always make it.
4. It usually takes 3 weeks to reach us with mail.

We will have "mail call" once a week at our AIM team prayer meetings. At that time we will receive letters and notifications of packages. We will the travel into Tana to pick those up when we receive a notice at the main Post Office. 

Our mailing address is:

AIM
Plemens Family

BP 714

Antananarivo 101

Madagascar 

On Monday we got our first experience with public transportation. Getting on a crowded bus when you don't speak the language or really know where you are going is an eye opening experience. We took about a 10 minute ride to where the children will most likely attend school, the Madagascar Christian Academy, and took a tour of the grounds. The school has doubled in size in the last two years and is in the midst of a construction project slated to finish next week. Many of the Muslim factory owners send their children to this school in order to learn English. The school uses the same curriculum as the Mauldin Christian Academy, a ministry of our home church, so the children are not only learning English, they are hearing the Gospel everyday! The school was originally started as an MK (Missionary Kid) school but now has more Malagasy families and teachers than any other category. These are the students that Deborah will be working with every Wednesday afternoon at AMI.

Today we are going south into downtown Tana for the first time. We will be visiting the crowded streets and marketplaces to see what it is like. In my head, I already hear Steven Curtis Chapman singing "It's All Yours."

No matter where you walk today remember that God is with you, He was there before yo got there and He'll still be there when you depart. There are people who need to hear the Good News in your city just as there are here in Mada.

You are Plan A. There is no Plan B.

Here's a little view of our new home!

http://youtu.be/BlaiwO2Aa-M

Dreaming of the Colonel

Our first night here was terrific...except for the disco adjacent to our compound and a rooster with a poor sense of timing. The music from the live band (who closed with La Bamba) played until almost 3 AM at which point the rooster began to crow about every 15 minutes. I dreamed I was Colonel Sanders.

This morning Jacob and I rolled out of bed about 6 AM and shared breakfast. I settled in to read while Jacob took a nap as the girls continued to slumber. Jet lag has us in its grip.

About 9:30 this morning we piled into, our team leader's very small car and drove from our burb, Mandriambero, thru Talamaty into Ambohidratrimo where AMI is located. We visited the school today as 15 new students were taking their entrance exams. The school teaches all classes in English. Deb and I will be the only native English speakers on staff. The rest of the staff is Korean and Malgasy, so effective communication will be difficult.

We are living in a different location from where we were originally told. From where we live AMI is about an hour and a half walk. The Madagascar Christian Academy, where Jacob & Sarah will attend school is about a 30 minute walk from our house. The MCA is in Talamaty where we will do most of our shopping at the local markets as well as a South African store called "Shop Rite."We took a tour of the markets and were amazed at the fresh fruits and veggies that are available.

After our tour we were treated to a delicious traditional Malgasy meal at the YWAM compound in Talamaty. Rice, carrot salad, stewed chicken, tomatoes and chickpeas were served by one of the sweetest and most welcoming families I have met. They went all out in welcoming us into their home.

Then we settled in for our first language training session. Pray for us as we try to quickly tackle the essentials in a very difficult language.

Jet lagged and slightly overwhelmed we returned home to have our first meal on our own in Mada. We had a  great time just being family around the table as we unpacked the days events as well as a few more suitcases.

I was reminded today that as  missionaries, we are not called to take God to the Malagasy people. God is taking us to the Malagasy people. And He got here first! We want our lives to be about establishing relationships that will ultimately allow us to disciple our students in Christ so that they may one day do the same.

2 Thessalonians 3:1