C/O TEAM P.O.
Box 969, Wheaton, Ill 60189
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Turners
Dear Friends and Partners,
Greetings in Jesus Name! We are just finishing the Islamic
month of fasting called "Ramadan". During this month, Muslims fast
from all food and drink during daylight hours--even water is not permitted in
this desert climate. At sunset, they break the fast with a special meal and the
rest of the evening is a time for visiting each other around great quantities of
lovely holiday foods. Special tents are set up where the poor can come to eat
meals donated by other Muslims. Although the fast is supposed to be a time of
identifying with the poor and hungry, as well as seeking forgiveness of sins,
the more well-to-do members of society may simply sleep during the day to avoid
the discomfort of fasting. The ones who suffer the most are, in fact, the ones
who already are poor and hungry. They must continue to work during the day,
often at manual labor without the benefit of air conditioning that the upper
class enjoys (...or water!). Although more food is sold during the Ramadan
"month of fasting" than at any other time of the year, and many
experience weight gain because of the nighttime feasts, there are deaths on the
other end of the social spectrum due to dehydration & other complications.
As for our family, praise God, Ben & Grace are both doing
well in school. Ben's favorite day is Tuesday because he has two hours of
computer class followed by double PE class at a fancy local hotel where he gets
to swim and play sports! (There are no PE facilities at their school yet.) What
a suffering MK he is! Grace has made significant progress with her dyslexia and
her teacher reports that she is basically at an average level for her grade,
except in spelling! Best of all, she wakes-up happy, goes to school happy, comes
home happy, and goes to bed happy...Grace is our resident " model of a good
attitude.
Thanks to Iraqis and termites, our house is now a
"home." For the first 9 months of living in our new house, we felt as
if we were simply occupying a building. The empty, uncarpeted rooms echoed with
every sound. Although we had painted, we had hardly any furniture so it looked
and felt empty. It was the farthest thing from inviting, comfortable or
"homey." Then, an Iraqi couple who had been blessed by Bill's ministry
right here on the field decided to support us! They said they had wanted to
support us monthly for two years; but after seeing our living conditions, they
decided to offer us the whole amount in one lump sum right now "to set-up
the house!" Through . their gift, we were able to exterminate the termites
crawling around in our kitchen drawers and buy a complete set of furniture for
the majlis (room for receiving visitors)! Also, while drilling through the
floors to apply the pesticide, our electricity was severed and our concrete
floors had to be broken up to fix the wiring. We were able to use the rest of
the couple's gift to completely retile and carpet the downstairs! We love our
home now! The kids are no longer embarrassed. to bring their friends over, and
we all finally feel "settled." Thank you, God, for the unexpected ways
in which You faithfully provide!
We have many encouraging ministry reports to share with you in
this issue, which are answers to your prayers for the Muslim World. So, read on
to enjoy some of the fruits of your labor, and thank you far your faithful
partnership with us!-
Blessings on you - Bill, Carol, Ben, &
Grace Turner
For up-to-date information from the
Turners, please read their newsletter posted on the mission bulletin board
in the church entryway.
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