Greetings from "the farm"

                                                                                                           Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012

Dear Family and Friends,

     It's hard to believe that Diane and I are begnning our 7th week in Tanzania.  The campus has a very "agricultural flavor."  The campus is about 60 acres, has 2500 students, and no paved roads.  Several of our Tanzania  faculty members raise livestock on their little house lot on campus--usually chickens, ducks, goats, and sheep.  Almost anywhere on campus you will see a mother hen with her brood of six or seven chicks scratching and pecking for food.
     The weather is really quite nice---60 degrees at night and about 82 degrees during the day, and that's the temperature all year round.  So we keep the windows open 24/7 for the fresh air and dust!  About midnight we can smell the distinct odor of our neighbor's sheep.  Then at 2 a.m. another neighbor's dog goes into attack mode as he takes on a snake---poisonous.  Then another neighbor has some "druken roosters" that start crowing around 3:20 a.m.!  This is more like living on the farm then when I was living on the farm!
   My class is going well.  I have 30 students who are second year students in the Bachelor of Divinity Progrram.  About one third are female and most all of them come from tribes with very strong cultural traditions.  We will soon be completing the academic part of my class.  For the last half of the semester we will move into the seminary chapel.  Each student will plan, practice, and lead a worship service for the rest of the class.  They will chant a full liturgy, deliver a sermon and preside at Holy Communion.  After each service the class will process, encourage, and critique the student's worship service.  The liturgy will be in Swahili  since that is the language they will use when  they go back to their villages.  But I asked that they do their sermon in English (for my sake).  Should be an interesting time.
    Things are going well here, and we pray that things are well for you.
   With a prayer for God's blessing,
        Pastor Tim & Diane
P.S.  All the pictures of flowers that follow are from our yard and neighborhood.  Enjoy!