Growing pains. I remember nights when Zach's legs hurt so much that he couldn't sleep, and I would sit on the end of his bed rubbing his calves until he drifted off, thinking about how my little boy was growing up. There wasn't anything I could do to stop the pain of change—it was a necessary thing we had to go through to obtain the result. I had to do my best to relieve the symptoms and wait, trusting that the pain would be worth it. And of course, while I was happy he was growing up, there was part of me that wished he would stay a little boy forever.
Looking back on 2023, so much of what we experienced in life and ministry echoes that same bittersweet feeling.
Sitting in Discovery School admin meetings trying to figure out how to make the cafeteria lunches always be ready on time, the buses arrive on schedule, the 152 staff members work happily and in harmony, and the 1400 students stay enthusiastically engaged in learning, I sense the growing pains. I miss the ease of getting to know staff members in a small group, of having the whole team over for dinner at the same time even as I rejoice in the number of jobs the school is providing in this, the poorest country in the world. We had to rush to hire new preschool teachers at the end of September, as we enrolled more preschool students than ever before, and rather than some of those who signed up not actually showing up on the first day of school, as has happened in the past, every single one of them showed up, and we had to open and staff two entire new classrooms to accommodate them. We still have three to four more years of building four new classrooms every summer as well as building a new kitchen before the infrastructure will be more or less complete.
We hired many of our teachers just out of high school, and they have obtained university degrees by studying in the evening. The staff that used to be a big group of young people who stayed around work after hours talking, laughing, and bonding, has slowly become a group of young marrieds with families, young children that are often sick, and a growing number of burdens, who rush off the second the bell rings to fulfill their other responsibilities. How do we help them remain a supportive team for each other in these new conditions?
I grieve the school's loss of our amazing HR manager, a young man Jesse and I had mentored, at the same time as I celebrate the character and skills he demonstrated in his work at DS, qualities that led to his promotion to a higher position in the management of all Emmanuel Church projects. It's good that DS can be a proving ground for leaders—but we miss them when they're gone, and filling the holes can be a big challenge.
Incoming HR Manager on the left, Outgoing HR Manager on the right
Our days are filled with interviews and problem-solving meetings. We are encouraged by the strength shown by our admin team. We work with the new school board, trying to keep the focus on our primary purpose, the school's vision of graduating students who are "Rooted in Christ; Ready for Tomorrow." We plan to have a Staff Family Day this trimester, where all our teachers and admins can come and bring their spouses and children and play games and eat together. We'll probably need to take an aerial photo to capture them all!
Timothy Bible School has burgeoned as well. There are now four separate tracks—Level 1 Students, Level 2 Students, a July-only group of students, and a group of evening students. Jesse continues to teach four classes, but now has to teach them multiple times to reach each group. The film team continues apace. From an original four members the team has grown to 13, and Jesse's brother has started a parallel team in the east of the country as demand was too high for just one team. We'll host a New Year's party for our Bujumbura-based team later this month. In 2023 they visited 28 churches and had 2,787 people come forward after films in repentance either to receive Christ or to give their lives back to Him.
Meanwhile, our own family is having growing pains, too. Zach and Micah are now both away for three months at a time at boarding school at Rift Valley Academy. They love it, and it is good for them—they're making leaps and bounds spiritually, academically, and physically. But, oh, we miss them. It is especially hard for Elliot, home alone in a country where expat families are so transient. He'll make a friend only to have them move away almost immediately, it seems, and Burundian friends haven't come as easily for him as they did for Zach and Micah. Zach is a senior this year and is applying to universities in the US, where he hopes to major in biology with a view to becoming a fish biologist. We plan to take our first big chunk of time in the US since 2016 and spend just over four months in the US (mid-August to December 2024) helping him get settled—he needs to learn to drive, figure out banking, grocery shopping, and lots of other US life skills. Meanwhile, Micah has permission to continue at Rift Valley Academy while we are off the continent, Elliot will do online school, and we'll have a chance to travel and visit some of you and share about the work in Burundi as well as take a short sabbatical.
Thank you SO much for your continued prayers, love, and support each step of the way!
In Him,
Jesse and Joy
