Fear of the Owl

 (Just a little something Jenn wrote in Guinea one day after talking to our language helper about some of his fears)

Sometimes we get off track in our language sessions and end up talking about things other than “class material”.  It’s all done in French, though, so we don’t feel too bad about taking a rabbit trail from time to time.

The other day we somehow got way off track and started talking about the owl of all things. As far as how we got there, your guess is as good as mine. However, that day, getting off track and talking about things other than class material led us to some interesting cultural information. We found out that our language helper, a 56-year-old man, and an elder in our church, is seriously afraid of owls. He explained that many Guineans are afraid of owls, especially those who were born in the forest or jungle regions of Guinea.

At first I found it hard to believe. I mean, when I think of owls I think of the little wise guy in cartoons who wears glasses and eats a Tootsie pop. How frightening can that possibly be?

Well, to them, it’s truly a real-life fear that we can’t underestimate. They believe that if you are walking through the jungle and you hear the infamous “whoo whoo” sound from an owl, that someone will die that night. It may be you, it may be your daughter, it may be your father. There is only one thing that you can do and that’s to take an animal sacrifice before the owl and hope that the blood he smells will satisfy his desire for death.

It’ sad, isn’t it? To think that people all over the world still believe in sacrifices. They are still clinging to the belief that the blood of a slaughtered animal will count for something. How sad that this man is holding fast to his former beliefs and not grasping the truth. I hope that he soon realizes that the ultimate sacrifice has been made, for once and for all.

“How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the living God!” Hebrews 9:14

“So Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people…” Hebrews 28a

“…we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Hebrews 10:10b

“And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin.” Hebrews 10:18

No Longer Homeless

We signed the contract for our apartment! ONE YEAR!

It was a long, hot process as we walked from neighborhood to neighborhood, in the 90 degree weather, looking for an apartment to rent. Once you find one that you are interested in, you must barter for the best price. Yes, you literally barter for the roof over your head. Thankfully our host was with us to help negotiate and to make sure that we ended up in a decent location. We saw about five apartments, and we are choosing the first one we ever looked at. It’s small (one bedroom), but it’s really all we need! Plus it’s a big step up from our apartment in Conakry because here our apartment will have (drumroll please…) RUNNING WATER and ELECTRICITY!

So now we wait for the last-minute “details” to be wrapped up (getting the keys, moving some furniture over there, turning on the water and electricity, getting internet hooked up, etc.) and we will be moving in!

We thank God for a temporary place to stay (the guesthouse) and we thank God for providing us with a new home here in Dakar.

The French "to rent" sign.

Coconut Treat

REFRESHING!

Shawn trying to get the best price.

The coconuts

This is a little refreshing treat we like to barter for on the street side.

@ the guesthouse

A pretty flower tree near the guesthouse in Dakar, Senegal.

Our temporary living space at the guesthouse. It's definitely cozy!

Some of the missionaries here in Dakar made a welcome basket for us!! What a blessing!

Shawn was snapping pictures of Jenn in front of a big tree before leaving to go visit our hosts. Yes we have a host family and a host church now! Our host is also the pastor of our church. They are very welcoming and we have been spending lots of time with them and eating most of our meals with them since we arrived.

NEW ADDRESS for LETTERS!

Shawn or Jenn DeAtley

B.P. 1166, 18523 Dakar

Senegal, W. Africa

We Made it!

Us with tickets in hand

We just wanted to fill you in: WE MADE IT TO DAKAR last night around 10pm. 

We had about 20 friends from our neighborhood come to the airport to wish us “bon voyage” and to say goodbye. It was sad to leave friends, but only God knows what the future holds, and just why He had us come to Guinea for the four months that He did. We can rest assured that HE KNOWS BEST! 

 We are staying at the mission guesthouse here in Dakar until we find an apartment.

Good news: we now have an African host family and church. We plan to spend the day together tomorrow learning more about them and talking about our NCLA (National culture/language acquisition) time together.

More PICTURES to come!

Last 2 Days

Relocating to Senegal on Wednesday!

Shawn with pastor Leno

Jenn at church with Esther

 A big thanks to all who have gone out of their way to encourage us as we get ready to move to Dakar. Despite the craziness of packing and organizing our things, saying goodbye to friends, and thinking ahead to a new start…we are encouraged with the many things God has done for us, and the things He has already arranged for us.

Moving to Senegal

Taking a step of faith is really like jumping off a cliff!

Hello from us again.

 

We wanted to inform you that we are moving to Dakar, Senegal even sooner than expected. The US Embassy here in Conakry has strongly urged all US citizens to depart from the country at this time. We have purchased our tickets through Air Mali and we will be leaving Wednesday, October 21st for Dakar.

 

Thankful that nothing ever takes God by surprise,

Shawn and Jenn

BIG Changes

Dear friends,

 

As all of you know: life is unpredictable! We have found that we learn a lot about faith and a lot about the character of God when change is thrown into the mix; although it is never easy.

 

Right now, we as missionaries in Guinea are facing some big changes. Two days ago our field leadership presented us with the idea of moving us to Dakar, Senegal to continue with our NCLA program (national culture and language), and it turns out that we will be making the move. We will continue in Dakar for a year (depending on our level of French/culture knowledge, as well as our involvement in our host church), and from there we will begin looking at village works throughout West Africa. Our goal of moving to a village to be involved in tribal church planting has not changed at all! It’s just a detour we have to take in order to get there.

 

Why the big move, you ask? Well, while at the moment things appear to be calm, there is still a lot of political tension between the military and the citizens, and even between various people groups within the country.  Elections are scheduled for the end of January, and there is no guarantee what will happen between now and then, and even after. If things take a turn for the worse, Conakry is the last place we should be.  Our mission feels that it would be a wise move to down-size to essential personnel only, such as those who are already in the middle of Bible teaching or Bible translation.

 

So what does this mean for us personally? This means that we will be leaving behind relationships that are very dear to us, and relationships that we have spent the last four months developing. That is the hardest thing for us to wrap our minds around! Also, we see the financial ramifications that this move brings to the table. We already owe our mission some money due to the set-up fees and moving expenses we had when we first arrived. It’s always expensive to move- especially when you’re moving to another country! We have furniture, a fridge and freezer, a car and some other items that we will either have to sell, store, or find a way to ship over later.

 

We realize that faith is in the details: we would have to fly to Dakar ($500 per ticket), possibly sell our car (it’s too far away to drive, and our car is too old to come into the country), we would have to pack up all of our things (again), find an apartment, a new host church, a new host family, etc.

 

 Wow- big changes, huh?! We know that you guys are good friends that care about us, and we know that you will pray on our behalf. This is an unexpected change for us, and it’s a bittersweet, stressful and exciting time. Thank you in advance for your prayers!

 

Always on the move (literally!!),

 

Shawn and Jenn DeAtley

Holding Hands

Billy and Shawn

A sign of friendship

Wow.  There are just some cultural customs that are hard to get used to. One of those customs is that here in Guinea, MEN HOLD HANDS! You can imagine how I (Jenn) have been waiting for this day to come: the day where I would be able to capture Shawn holding hands with another man. There’s something especially comical about two “tough men”  walking down the street together, hand in hand. Here it signifies a true friendship between two men. I guess I have one question: are you man enough?

Monday Morning

Shawn getting ready to drink his instant coffee. We can't wait to try the new Starbucks instant coffee!

Sitting on our balcony. The sun is bright!

The view of the morning traffic from our balcony.

Preparing for the hot and dry season!