I had sort of forgotten how nice the winter weather could be here in our part of West Africa. 

Last year we came back from furlough just as the temperatures were heating up. This year, we were on the field throughout December and January so we were able to experience the local winter weather again. 

So what does winter in West Africa feel like?
Most mornings we wake up to the low 60’s and by lunchtime it’s somewhere in the 90’s. That may not sound like winter to you, but the lower nighttime temps really help keep the house cool. Winter also means dry season, so there’s no humidity to hold the heat in. We don’t have air conditioning, so we have really appreciated this.

Two weeks ago, we visited a nearby house church and two of our kids forgot to bring a jacket. They were both shivering from the cold. When Justin checked the temperature on his phone it was actually 74 degrees! To be fair — it felt colder than that in the shade. However, it made me laugh thinking that if the tables were turned 74 would feel hot in Virginia right about now.

Winter is starting to fade now as the days are steadily getting hotter. While I’m sad to see the cool temperatures disappear, most of our local friends would much rather endure the heat than the cold. For example, one time I was telling our neighborhood pharmacist about the freezing cold winters in America, and he shook his head and said, “Huh?!…that cold temperature is for cadavers!”

If you are on our prayer support team I hope you have been keeping up with our monthly newsletters. We have had a lot going on with the Tree of Life ministry. In 2022 our disciple making master trainers took the training into several new countries including; Togo, Benin, Cape Verde, Guinea, Chad, Cameroon, and Uganda. It’s really amazing to see how these national missionaries are reaching their people and their neighbors for Christ!  

We’ve also seen a lot of progress at the Tree of Life training center worksite over the last year. We still have quite a ways to go, but we are hopeful that it will be operational by this fall. We are so thankful for everyone who has supported this project in prayer and financial support! 

God bless,

Rachel