We're Back!

Well, we have actually been back in South Africa for about 11 days now, but it has taken us almost that long to get our sleeping schedules readjusted, get back into a routine, and just feel normal again!

On January 5th, we celebrated our second year of being in South Africa, which just seems surreal. It certainly has been a quick two years, and we have had a very positive experience overall. We now sit with less than a year before we go on home assignment for four months (January - April 2009), which is equally unreal for us. It seems just like yesterday that we were going through our missionary intern training!

We suppose there is a lot to update everyone on, but we'll try to keep it brief, just to make sure that you can still see by the time you get done here:

1. Babies - On Wednesday, Tricia will be 27 weeks along, so we are entering the range of "viability" if the babies should happen to come early, as often happens with twins. The doctor said that the next 4-5 weeks will be the most critical time of the pregnancy for the babies, so we expect him to tell Tricia that she will have to work from home for the rest of the pregnancy when we pay him a visit tomorrow. But so far, all is well!
2. Jake - He had a BLAST going home and seeing his family and friends over the holidays. He still talks about "the States" at least once a day, and has already made all kinds of plans for what he is going to do next time he goes back. The picture above is Jake's first snowman that he and Daddy built while in Bourbonnais.
3. Jobs - Virtually everything in South Africa that is not a retail business looks like a ghost town in December, especially after the 15th. Johannesburg especially, since people head for the coastal towns to enjoy the summer. Most people here take at least two weeks of vacation every December. At any rate, we are back in the routine at work, and starting 2008 off right is our main focus. Jeremy and the World Mission Communications team are working on a number of things, starting with goal-setting for the new year. This should be an exciting year for WMC-Africa. As for Tricia, she is trying to get things wrapped up to a point where she can hand most of her duties off when the babies are born.
4. Life in general - We praise God that we are all well and has readjusted back to the time, weather, and life here. There is something to be said about being able to settle into a routine, it just makes life easier (for us anyway). However, at the same time, we are amazed how two different places, halfway around the world from each other, can feel like home to us at the same time. We expected to feel a bit weirder going back home than we actually did, and we also didn't expect to feel so at home when we got back, either. Being a missionary is a confusing thing sometimes! Well, anyway, we are anxiously awaiting the end of March, when life in general will change in a big way for us!

Jake's Quote of the Week

Daddy: "Jake, in about 10 years, you'll be out there playing basketball with Daddy and the rest of the guys!"
Jake: "I'll tell you when I'll play basketball with you guys... how about right after never?"

(Definitely his mother's child... :) )

Praises and Prayer Requests

We thank all of you for all of your prayers as we were travelling to the US and back. The actual travel was fine on both ends (or as fine as 2o hours in a plane can be), and we all enjoyed our time in the US. We definitely felt God at work, even in the little details of making our trip a little more enjoyable. We thank Him for that!

Please remember the following needs in prayer:

-- The continued health of Tricia and the babies
-- Jake is starting his first year of 5-day-a-week preschool now
-- Our openness to God's direction for our lives and ministry
-- The dream of WMC-Africa and Africa East Field to start a Nazarene radio station in Nairobi, Kenya in 2008 (e-mail Jeremy if you want more details)
-- Jeremy's trip to Rwanda later this month (and for Tricia and Jake while he is gone)
-- The Africa Region Leadership Conference in April 2008

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Real Quick...

We have had a number of questions about what we would like for Christmas, where to send gifts, etc., and thought that answering those questions here might be helpful.

We will be leaving for the U.S. on December 8th and will be traveling around visiting family and friends for the rest of the month. We will not have much space in our luggage when we come back, so the most useful thing would be Wal-Mart or Target gift cards to help us out with those things that we need to buy in the U.S. (some things are MUCH cheaper in the U.S.). However, we don't want to limit people's creativity, just letting you know that we might not have room to actually take much back with us.

Here is our U.S. mailing address for those wanting to mail things to us:

14100 S. Locust St.
Olathe, KS 66062

Another update soon!

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Jake's Surgery

Jake has come out of his surgery to put tubes in his ears just fine, and is in mostly good spirits and pain-free at the moment. He is still dealing with the grogginess from the anesthesia, but is otherwise okay. The doctor said that with a couple of days of rest, he should be back to 100%.

The doctor also said that while he definitely thinks that the tubes were necessary, that his ears looked better than they did a year ago. He hopes that this will be the final time that he has to put them in and that Jake's middle ear will grow enough to take care of the issues by itself by the time these fall out.

Please continue to pray for Jake's recovery over the next few days. Also, please remember in prayer Linda Braaten, a fellow missionary that will be having knee surgery tomorrow. Linda works with Jeremy in World Mission Communications.

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

A Quick Update

Hello everyone... yes, it has been over a month now. We actually started to write this post over two weeks ago, and didn't get around to finishing it. We are pretty swamped right now, so here is the "highlights" version of what has been going on over the last month (in no particular order):

1. Jake had a concert at school, in which he was a duck, and sang loud enough that Mommy and Daddy could hear his voice over everyone else's, even 10 rows back from the stage! We included a pre-concert and post-concert picture of him here.

2. Tricia's best friend Amber had a baby boy, Levi Rush Dickson, on November 5th. For the curious, you can see pictures at http://ladickson.blogspot.com

3. Jeremy went on his first trip outside of South Africa in the 22 months that we have been here. He spent 4 days in Nairobi, Kenya working with the Africa East Field leadership and World Mission Communications team to set a strategy for how media can best be used on that field in the future.

4. Jake has been practicing riding his bike without training wheels and is getting pretty good at it!
A video clip of one of his rides is below. Here's what he is saying during the ride: "Hey, I'm all right! Oh no, here we go again... oh, we're making a turn, ya lousy bike. My bike is lousy! Oh, watch out, comin' through. Comin' through... whoooooaa." We don't know where he has heard the word "lousy" used in context, but it sure was funny!

5. Tricia is starting to feel a little bit better as far as nausea goes, but those twins have her worn out almost all the time. Please continue to pray for her pregnancy.

6. Jake is going to be having surgery to put tubes in his ears again, as he is having problems with his allergies and hearing again. He has his surgery on Wednesday of next week, so please remember him in prayer as well.

7. We are getting a chance to head back to the U.S. for Christmas this year, so we are leaving on December 8th and will be back in South Africa on January 2nd. Please pray for safe travels for our family during this time.

8. We met a young couple from Canada at the mall tonight, here with Athletes in Action. The guy is a professional soccer player and they are trying to organize the Christian professional athletes here in South Africa for some big outreach activities during the 2010 World Cup, which will be held here. It's always nice to make new friends!

Well, that's about all for now, we'll write more when we get a chance!

Jake's Quote of the Week (or is it Month?)

Worship Leader: "Who wants to go to heaven one day?"

Jake (in a loud voice, after the "amens"): "Not me!"

(And yes, the whole congregation heard it.)

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia and Jake

We're Pregnant... With Twins!

Wow. We are shocked. After over 3 years of trying to have more children after we had Jake, God has blessed us with two at the same time! Their due date is April 18th, though the doctor said that they will deliver them by c-section at least three weeks early, so around the end of March. We can't wait, but hope that the twins wait as long as possible!

Well, this a blessing that has us a little nervous, but we are overjoyed and so, so thankful at the same time. We know that twins presents a whole different set of challenges, starting from extra precautions in pregnancy, and proceeding up through sending both to college at the same time, but we know that the One who gave us this blessing will see to all of those little details. Right now, we're just trying to get these goofy grins off our faces! :)

Tricia has been feeling that good 'ol "morning sickness" for the past 7 weeks now, and it isn't just in the morning, either! It seems that two makes the problem a little worse than one does! Please pray for all five of us as we go through these next several months of pregnancy.

Well, we are so thrilled that we have such an extended network of family and friends that can be praying for us and sharing in this with us. It is difficult to be physically removed from everyone during this time, and we know that once the babies arrive, we are going to wish that we were able to share everything with family and friends (including sharing diaper changing duty!). As always, your prayers will be greatly appreciated!

Please feel free to share the news with your churches, we want our LINKS family to be aware and share in this with us as well.

Jake's Quote of the Week - Special Edition

Since we told Jake the news, he has really been on a roll:

"Mom, can you get muscles on your shoulders? I need to get bigger muscles so I can hold two babies."

"I can't wait until my mom lays two babies."

"I am so excited, I'm going to jump around like a kangaroo!"

"I'm not going to talk nonsense when the babies come, because then they will grow up and talk nonsense too."

Praises and Prayer Requests

Well, no need to be redundant here. We don't really have much else on our minds right now. :)

Actually, we would still very much appreciate your prayers for our ministry here in Africa.

Until next time,

The Johnson Five

Now Playing...

Well, this is the first time that you actually get to see some of our work! Above is a video that was just produced by World Mission Communications - Africa Region, with help from local media house Kurula Media, which is owned by a Nazarene here in South Africa. This video is a promotional tool designed to raise prayer support for the 2008 Africa Region Leadership Conference. Please share this video with your churches and as many people as you can! Also, if you have an FTP site and are interested, Jeremy can get a higher resolution video to you that will play better on a big screen, video projector, etc. Just contact him at jeremy@africa-region.org.za

Yes, we have been very busy lately, with the end of the year quickly approaching and the projects piling up. But God has really been making us feel useful and needed lately, which is why we are here! It would take a couple of pages to describe all of the things that we have been doing, so we won't bore you with details. Suffice it to say that Jeremy has been working hard in World Mission Communications and Tricia has been working hard with the 3D Program for Africans called to missions.

We will give a more personal update soon, but since it had been nearly a month since we had written, we thought we'd let everyone know that we are still alive! :) Thanks for the prayers and may God bless you!

Jake's Quote of the Week

"We like the Cubs, eh Dad? We don't like the Cardinals 'cause they're stinky."

(So young, and yet so wise... :))

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God for the opportunity to be used by Him to make disciples of all nations. We are humbled everyday by the tasks that he has given us and the strength he provides to complete them.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jake, who has a touch of the flu this week

-- Our work here in Africa

-- Our church, Africa Trinity Church of the Nazarene, and our pastor

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Gone Fishing!

This weekend, Jake and Daddy went on their first father/son fishing trip! Jake got a rod and reel a week or so ago, and finally got to put it to use on Saturday at the Malina Fishing Lodge, about 20 minutes from our house.

Jake actually did a great job of being patient and hanging there on a chilly spring morning. It was a little windy and cold, but Jake sat with his pole for over an hour. He got a few bites and even hooked into a pretty nice-sized rainbow trout, but the fish got off the hook and flopped back in the pond just as he was reeling it out of the water (Daddy needs to buy a net!). But it was a great time and a memorable experience for the two of them.

We also wanted to let everyone know that we are beginning to schedule deputation services for our home assignment from January 2009 - April 2009. We would love to visit any of you that would like to schedule us! Please let us know as soon as possible, as we are already filling time slots. Just drop us an e-mail at tjjohnson98@yahoo.com to check our availability. We look forward to seeing you all!

Jake's Quote of the Week

"Mommy, my name is not Jake Johnson anymore, it's Hungry Jake Johnson from now on."

(Yet it seems he is usually only hungry for sweets!)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We thank God for his constant love and attention to those little details in life. We also are continually amazed at his ability to keep us on our toes! This has been a good month.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jake seems to have caught a little upper respiratory bug that was going around his school, which has led to an ear infection. Please pray for Jake.

-- Please pray that Tricia and Jeremy don't get it!

-- Please pray for our church, Africa Trinity Church of the Nazarene and our pastor, Rev. Madela Mashinini

-- Please pray that God blesses our efforts in serving him here in Africa

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Spiderman!

We have realized that we have been a bit lax in updating you all on the thing that changes most in our family, and that's Jake! So this blog entry is going to be all about him.

I guess the best way to do this is just to talk about some of his recent exploits, so here goes:

1. Spiderman - As you can see, Jake got a Spiderman costume for his birthday, but only started wearing it recently. Though he has never seen Spiderman in a movie or cartoon, he somehow got the idea that he was a "baddie". Now that he knows he is a "goodie", he wears the costume every chance he gets.

2. Fishing - Jake recently told his dad that he wanted to go fishing. So this past Saturday, Jake and Daddy went to buy a fishing pole with some of his leftover birthday money and then went to a trout farm to check the place out. Daddy brought him home after that and showed him how to cast and reel in the backyard, and he has been doing that each day since. He and Daddy are going on their first fishing trip this coming Saturday. Stay tuned for fish stories!

3. Gardening - We also recently bought some tomato seeds and are working on planting a little garden this year. We have five little tomato plants that just came up this week and check on them everyday (multiple times) to make sure they have enough water, sunlight, etc. It has been a fun experience so far for Jake, and he is already talking about eating some tomatoes!

4. Girlfriend - Jake has had a "girlfriend" at school for a few weeks now, her name is Naomi. Interestingly enough, she is a descendant of Harmon Schmelzenbach, the first Nazarene missionary to Africa! Jake and Naomi greet each other with hugs everyday at school, and also hug when they leave... and also every five minutes during the day... and now have started kissing each other too. The teacher are now separating them when things get out of hand, but Jake is quite the ladies' man, it seems!

5. Sports - As you can see in the picture, we have been playing soccer in the backyard lately, as well as baseball and football sometimes. Jake has also been taking gymnastics lessons to help him with his balance and has started doing rugby as an "extracurricular" activity during the school day. His favorite part of all of those sports is saying, "Doh!" and falling on the ground. :)

Jake's Quote of the Week

“ Can I have my Vitamin C and my Vitamin Pooh now?”

(Jake has Winnie the Pooh vitamins, and also takes Vitamin C occasionally.)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God for this time that we are enjoying with Jake right now. We know that so many kids in the US (even four-year-olds) have so many "activities" that they do, that they hardly have time to breathe. We are glad for the chance to spend so much time with Jake in a place where we have to make our own activities. It's been a blessing!

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Good health as the weather changes back to spring

-- God's blessing and guidance in our work

-- Marlen and Leo Leon (our friends in KC) as they celebrate the birth of their daughter

-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

3 Weeks?!

Wow... embarrassed, ashamed, slackers... yep, those are all us. We haven't given you an update in three weeks, which means we are not holding up our end of the bargain on this blog. You've been hearing this far too often lately, but we're sorry. Again.

Let's see, what have we been doing since the middle of July? Ah yes, that was about the time that Tricia and Jake were both very sick for three or four days. There was a very bad cold going around, and they both happened to catch it. Then from there, we have had quite a bit of action here!

Jeremy spent the following week planning for intensive planning sessions for his World Mission Communications staff and a representative from Headquarters in Kansas City. These meetings took place last week and involved putting the goals for the Africa Region into a concrete vision of how World Mission Communications can help accomplish those goals. Jeremy and his staff were excited and energized by the meetings and you will definitely be hearing more about those efforts as they are put into place and/or completed.

Tricia has been working tirelessly on staying in contact with her missionary candidates here in Africa and will begin publishing a newsletter to them soon. She is also still working with managing the guest flats for the various guests that come from all over the world to the Africa Region offices. Another task that she has recently been given is preparing a week-long, Africa-specific training session for new missionaries that will come to our region from the United States. This will be an ongoing part of her duties in the future as well.

In our personal lives, we took a little getaway this weekend, as this week we will be celebrating their 9th wedding anniversary (August 8th)! Well, we still feel young anyway! :) We praise God for blessing our marriage to this point and thank him for every day that we have together. We have made it this far solely by his grace and love that allows us to love each other the way we do (and patience that allows Tricia to put up with Jeremy!). :)

Jake's Quote of the Week

Trying on sandals at Woolworth's: "Dad, these sandals look like 'le fruitcake'!"

(He got that little term from the movie "Flushed Away", not his father)

Praises and Prayer Requests

As mentioned above, we praise God for nine wonderful and exciting years together. We have definitely been through a lot of "life" in those nine years, with a lot of ups and downs, but we praise God for every minute of it, as he shapes us into the people and the couple he wants us to be!

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Good health (only a few more weeks until spring!)

-- Labor strikes that have been affecting the South African economy

-- God's blessing on our work here

-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Babies, babies everywhere!

Well, we just can't seem to get it right lately and do a post every week, but better late than never, right? Mostly, it's just business (busy-ness) that is keeping us from doing it, but that is never a good excuse. So here are a couple of highlights from the last couple of weeks:

You see in the first picture here (in order of age), Jake, Lindiwe, Tshepo, and little baby Nikita. You all know Jake, but Lindiwe is a two-year-old girl, Tshepo is a one-year-old boy, and Nikita is a one-month-old girl (who is smaller than Jake was at birth).

These babies stayed with us for a couple of days when Tsholofelo Baby Sanctuary was relocating to a different house. We decided to help them out a bit by taking this crew to stay with us while all of the workers were busy packing, moving, unpacking, and getting re-established in their new house. It was quite an experience going from one child to four overnight, but Jeremy and Tricia made it! It was a rewarding experience and we plan on doing it again sometime just for fun (maybe with one less). :)

Another highlight was the time we got to spend visiting with Blue Springs First Church of the Nazarene on July 1st. We were able to attend a portion of their service through the magic of Skype, which is a really cool application that allows you to talk over the internet for free, as well as doing things like webcams, conference calls, etc. You should check it out sometime, it's how we stay in touch with a lot of our friends and family. Anyway, we were interviewed by a couple of members of their local Nazarene Missions International council, and it was a lot of fun to be able to interact with them in this way. If you are interested in doing this with your congregation as well, just send us an e-mail!

Other than that, we have been plugging away at work, spending lots of time playing with Jake, and having a good time! Jeremy is preparing to preach this Sunday, but otherwise we are just planning for a nice, relaxing weekend. Hope yours is as well!

Jake's Quote of the Week

“Dear Jesus, thank you for my wonderful dad and that I am going to have a girlfriend some day. Also, thank you for the peace of the heart that you gave me. Amen.”

(And... it starts.)

Praises and Prayer Requests

Well, over the last couple of weeks we have all been sick (though Jeremy's was just for a few hours and probably food-related), but we are doing much better now. It's winter time in Joburg again, which means it's dry, dusty, smoky, and then 65-70 during the day and 30-40 at night... a perfect recipe for colds and upper respiratory infections. We make it, though! :)

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jeremy will be preaching at Africa Trinity Church of the Nazarene this Sunday morning
-- Wisdom for creative ways to continue to build relationships with the South African community
-- Continued good health
-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Let it SNOW?!?

What? Snow in Africa? Yep, that's what we thought when we woke up yesterday morning. It had actually snowed in Johannesburg, for the first time since 1981 (Jeremy and Tricia were Jake's age then!). Our picture here doesn't show nearly as much snow as in other places throughout Johannesburg, but it was something! People were taking pictures, playing in the snow, and just overall enthralled by this little dusting of white stuff. It made these two Midwesterners laugh that this was actually considered "snow".

Jake was a bit under the weather with a cold this past week, but seems to be back to about 95% now. It has been a week of wild weather shifts, as you can imagine, and it has all of our sinuses working overtime. We're just glad we've had people bring us Advil! :)

Between our jobs, church, and volunteering at the baby home, our days have been pretty busy! This weekend, we will have three babies, ranging from two years to four weeks old, as the baby home moves to a different house. It should be interesting! By the way, for anyone interested, the baby home's website is http://www.tsholofelo.org. Jeremy is also substitute teaching a Sunday School class for the next couple of weeks, helping our pastor plan some outreach events, and preparing to preach a couple of times in July. So... we aren't bored! :)

Jake's Quote of the Week

“Can we watch my new ‘Flushed Down the Toilet’ movie tonight?”

[We recently picked up a used copy of "Flushed Away" (a little cartoon movie about an uptown mouse and his visit to the sewer), and Jake got the concept right, just not the words.]

Praises & Prayer Requests

We praise God for the snow! It was a nice little reminder of home. The last time we saw snow was in January 2006, so it did bring a little smile to our faces. God knows how to make us smile!

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jeremy and Tricia this weekend, as they go from one kid to four (temporarily)!

-- Our health

-- The baby home's move this weekend

-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Happy Fathers' Day!!!

This weekend we celebrated Fathers Day, and Jeremy wanted to go to the Botanical Gardens to go hiking with Jake for their special Fathers' Day activity. Jake is now 4 and he loves to hike around and look at bugs and birds. They hiked for a couple of hours on the trails in the Botanical Gardens, and then we all enjoyed a nice lunch in the restaurant there. One of the points of interest at the Gardens is the huge waterfall. Jake enjoyed throwing rocks into the water with his daddy and they climbed around by the water a little bit. It was a wonderful day where we could let Jeremy know how much we appreciate him and love him.

This week was a good week at work. Jeremy is all moved into his new office and is trying to figure out all that he needs to do in his new position of Communications Coordinator. It will be a period of learning for now as to all the different areas he will be involved in. He is a little nervous but very excited for what God has in store for him in this new area of ministry.

Tricia is still hard at work with the Africans that are called to missions. She is trying to move them all forward in the training and assessment process in order for all of them to be able to find their places in missions. She is also going to be promoting missions on the region and shedding light on the types of “missions” that Africans are already doing here in Africa. Once that occurs, then she can encourage more people to get involved in things that are already occurring in their own area.

Jake's Quote of the Week

“Do you know what my favorite part of my body is? It is my wrist… and my muscles.”

(This was one of those moments where you just have no idea what is about to come out of your child's mouth... but we were relieved!)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We would like to thank you all for your prayers. We praise the Lord we have all been well so far this winter and Tricia seems to be a lot better with her allergies than she was last year.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jeremy's transition into his new ministry
-- The Africans that are called to missions, and Tricia as she helps them in the process
-- For continued health so that we can keep working hard for Him
-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Happy Birthday Jake!

Jake with his preschool class, and his pinata, which these South African kids had never seen before











Jake getting ready to blow out the candles at his preschool party












Jake opening his gifts













A Mexican wrestler even showed up at Jake's party! (okay, it's a Spiderman costume, those are big here)











Jake enjoying his birthday ice cream at Spur, his favorite restaurant!











Jake's Quote of the Week

As Tricia walks in his room, he stands up in his bed and flexes... "Look how big my muscles are, 'cause I'm four now!"



Thank you Lord for the privilege of four years with this wonderful boy. We love him more than life itself!

An Upcoming Birthday!

Well, Jake’s 4th birthday is coming up on June 6th, it’s hard to believe that these four years have gone by so fast. It is another time for us to reflect on how much God has blessed us to have this special little boy in our lives. It’s also a time for… Jake to get presents! This year, Jake decided that what he really wanted was a couple of goldfish. So, we decided to go ahead and take a trip to the pet shop this week because… well, because we just can’t wait for exciting things like that. So now we have two little goldfish, Tigger and Adarby (we have no idea where that one came from). Jake loves to sit and watch them, and especially loves to feed them. Looks like it was a success!

This past weekend, we have had two Point Loma Nazarene University students staying with us as part of a cultural anthropology class that they are taking (how come I never took any classes like that?). It has been a lot of fun getting to know them and some of the other members of the group. Jeremy even had three of them playing basketball with him on Sunday! We really enjoy when teams come through here and we can get to know people from all over the world.

Also this weekend, we took seven of the babies from the baby home to a park to play. They had a great time being out and about and getting out of the orphanage for a little while. A few of them even fell asleep on the ten minute ride back, they had played so hard!

Jake’s Quote of the Week

Jake: “Mom, something is telling me that I should have some more fruit snacks.”
Tricia: “What is telling you that?”
Jake: “My voice is.”

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God for giving us another year with Jake. He is the best thing that has ever happened to us!

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- The safety of the Point Loma group as they travel around South Africa for the next two weeks and then back home.
-- Jeremy’s transition to his new job next month.
-- Our family’s health during the winter months.
-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Time for an Update

We’re sure that most of you are thinking, “About time…”, and you’re right. It’s been two and a half weeks since our last blog entry, and there is some important news to share. However, before we do, take a look at Jake’s most recent masterpiece that he drew on his chalkboard. He got some new chalk, so it inspired him to write his name and draw a self-portrait. Not bad for a three-year-old, eh? :)

So, now to the news… first of all, Jeremy has gotten a new job! Starting on June 11th, he will be taking the position of Communications Coordinator for the Africa Region. It’s quite a bit more responsibility, as he will be coordinating the video, radio, internet and written communication for the Region, as well of thinking of new ways to tell the story of the Africa Region and work to better connect the African church with the rest of the global church. Jeremy is excited for the challenge and the opportunity!

Second, we got a little taste of home this past weekend when we had a telephone call with our home church! It was great to be able to share a little bit about what we are doing in Africa and to get to hear our pastor’s voice, as well as the voices of a few other congregation members! Jake sang a song and said a Bible verse for them, and everyone seemed to enjoy that. Unfortunately, we were on the call from our computer and the African internet was not cooperating too well, so it was hard to understand parts of the call. But at least we got to hear from them, and that was nice!

Finally, we want to wish a belated Happy Mothers’ Day to all of the mothers that follow along on our blog. Hope you had a very special day!

Jake’s Quote of the Week

“Dear Jesus, thank you for our lovely pizza and our lovely servillettes and please let it stay smelling “pizzaly” in our car, because we like it when it smells like pizza in our car. Amen.”

(It’s those little blessings that God bestows on us… like “pizzaly” cars.)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God that he was looking after one of our friends, little eight-week-old Jonathan Kanenungo, as he underwent emergency surgery to fix an artery that had not closed properly after his birth (Jonathan’s parents, Naila and Simba, work at the Africa Regional Office). Jonathan came through the surgery very well and is now recovering.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jonathan's continued recovery

-- Jeremy's preparation for his new job

-- Our family's health this winter

-- God's blessing upon our ministry here in Africa

-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Winter on the Way

Well, now that we have entered May, we are reminded that winter is on the way. This past weekend has been VERY cold (for autumn in Joburg), with highs in the low 50s and very windy, and the temperatures at night getting into the low 40s. This forced us to get the space heaters out, since houses in South Africa do not have central heating. Today is much warmer, but we are hearing that a cold winter is on the way. Luckily, winters here don't last too long!

Last week, Jeremy finished teaching his first class at Nazarene Theological College, and it was a success! He taught church administration and basic budgeting to our future pastors that are going through the program there. Jeremy still has finals and course projects to grade, but he enjoyed it well enough to do it again when the college needs him!

We have had a few days to relax in the past week, as we celebrated Freedom Day and Laborer's Day here in South Africa. Freedom Day commemorates the birth of the "new" South Africa, when free democratic elections were held for the first time in this country on April 27, 1994. Laborer's Day is essentially the same as our Labor Day, and is celebrated today, May 1st. The time of relaxation has been nice!

Jake's Quote of the Week

“I really miss my cousins. I’m going to be sad for forty days and forty nights, because I really miss them.”

(We recently got some pictures of his cousins, so he is remembering them and has been talking about them a lot lately.)

Praises and Prayer Requests

It has been a good few weeks, and we are really thankful for that. Jake has battled with the change of the seasons and sickness, but nothing too major. We also praise God because the first test in the series of tests that Lindiwe has to go through turned out to be negative for the illness she was feared to have.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Lindiwe's continued testing

-- Jake, as he fights off a cold

-- That Jeremy and Tricia can manage to stay healthy as the season changes

-- God's blessing on our work here in the Africa Regional Office

-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Happy (Belated) Easter!

Jake taking a pony ride at the Easter egg hunt at one of the big shopping centers












Jake with his basket on Easter morning













Jake and our friend Lindiwe, getting ready to do their own Easter egg hunt at our house












Jake with his Easter present, a magnifying glass













Jake and Lindiwe eating the candy they found

Giant Crickets, Lizards and Toes...Oh My!

Well, the biggest news by far this week is that Jake prayed for Jesus to take all of the sin out of his heart and for him to live there forever instead! He came up with this completely on his own (well, at least as far as the decision goes), so Daddy prayed with him and Jesus now lives in Jake's little heart! We are so proud of him!

The picture this week is Jake having an encounter with one of our "neighbors", one of the small lizards that find their way into our house from time to time. Daddy and Jake found this one on Saturday, and kindly showed it out of the house. We don't mind having them around though, as there are far fewer mosquitoes around here thanks to the little guys (and the altitude).

As for the giant crickets, our dog Jozi makes sure that none of those make it into the house. Her mission every night is to seek out, torture, and half-eat the three to four inch long crickets (the specific variety most often found in Joburg is called the "Parktown Prawn"). Jozi can be seen most night digging through the grass, jumping around, and flipping the crickets through the air. To see what Parktown Prawns look like, click here: http://home.intekom.com/intekom/parktown_prawns/

In other news, we had a minor scare this week when we thought Jake broke his big toe while clowning around with Daddy. After a trip to the doctor for x-rays (it was all swollen and purple the next morning), turns out it was only sprained. He's walking around fine on it now, so I guess it's true what they say, kids really are made out of rubber!

Jake's Quote of the Week

“No, my name is not Jacob, my name is Jake Africa Johnson. No, my name is Jake Africa Spirit Johnson, like the Spirit of the Lord God.”

(Seriously, where did this kid come from?!)

Praises & Prayer Requests

Of course, our big praise for the week is Jake's acceptance of Jesus into his life! We are happy that Jake can start on his Christian walk at an early age and that all of the prayers, Bible stories, etc. have paid off! Please pray for Jake as he starts on this lifelong journey.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Tricia's sister's family, as they have recently had a traumatic experience that the whole family is dealing with

-- Jeremy, as he prepares to teach at NTC next month
-- Tricia, as she will be the only present member of the Missionary Personnel department her in Africa while the Cramers are on home assignment for the next 7 weeks

-- The upcoming worldwide Nazarene theology conference in Amsterdam during the first week of April
-- Lindiwe, the little girl that we play with at the orphanage, as she undergoes tests next week for a life-threatening illness
-- Unspoken requests

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

New Experiences

Over the past couple of weeks, we have had some new experiences, which we are glad to have, after being in Africa for over a year now. Sometimes, working in the regional office can feel like it gets a bit dull, since you are not in typical "mission work". There is not much front-line ministry that we do, other than what we find to do on our own.

Last Saturday, we attended the graduation ceremony at Nazarene Theological College here in Johannesburg. Since we go to the church located on the college campus, we have gotten to know many of the students, and it was nice to see them graduate. Now we will have friends pastoring in local churches in South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe, with another friend that wants to teach at the college in Mozambique once he finishes more schooling. The picture this week is Jeremy and Jake standing with our friend from Mozambique, Arcenio Manjate. He has had a very interesting and difficult journey to graduating from NTC (where he took classes in English, his 4th best language), so it was especially meaningful to see him graduate. Jeremy will be teaching an Administration and Accounts class at the college next month, so we are getting more and more involved with the college as time goes by, which is nice. In 10 or 15 years, the students we knew from NTC will likely be our pastors and district superintendents throughout Africa, so it's very nice to start those relationships now.

The following day (last Sunday), Jeremy preached his first sermon in Africa. It was also just the seventh morning sermon at the newly formed Africa Trinity Church of the Nazarene, which made it a double honor for Jeremy. Like a good Nazarene preacher, Jeremy preached on holiness, and the Gauteng district superintendent and many others that had attended the graduation were also there. It was definitely a different experience than preaching in the US, or even preaching to a Spanish-speaking congregation, as there are some interesting nuances to being a guest preacher in Africa. However, all went well, and it ended up being a nice service!

Jake's Quote of the Week

"I'm a funky man." (while dancing his way across the living room)

["Funky" is not a word we use a lot in the Johnson house, and neither of his parents are known for their dancing prowess, so we really have no idea where Jake got this. Please keep this on the down low and do not report Jake to World Mission, we want to keep him here with us in Africa. :) ]

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God this week for new opportunities to minister to others in his name. He has really blessed us to be able to experience so much just in this short time that we have been in Africa.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Jeremy, as he prepares to teach at NTC next month

-- Tricia, as she will be the only present member of the Missionary Personnel department her in Africa while the Cramers are on home assignment for the next 8 weeks

-- David & Patti Cramer and Linda Braaten as they travel around the US for the next few months on home assignment

-- The upcoming worldwide Nazarene theology conference in Amsterdam during the first week of April

-- Lindiwe, the little girl that we play with at the orphanage, as she undergoes tests next week for a life-threatening illness

-- Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Touchdown, Kan-sas City!

The picture you see here is Daddy and Jake playing tackle football in the common area of our townhouse complex. Over the past year, Jake has decided that he is a big Kansas City Chiefs fan (just like Daddy, coincidentally), and he wears Chiefs t-shirts, likes to play tackle football, loves anything with the Chiefs logo on it, and randomly yells things like, "Go Chiefs!" and recently "Touchdown, Kan-sas City!" (for those of your not familiar with Chiefs football, that is the Chiefs' radio announcer's signature phrase). Anyway, he is a Chief-aholic, so any LINKS churches that wonder what Jake would like, anything to do with the Chiefs would be a safe bet. :)

We missed writing last week because we were at a spiritual retreat for missionaries working in the Africa Regional Office. It was a nice time to take a step back from the pace and pressures of the office and just to refocus on why we are here and what God wants to do in our lives. The place we went to was a remote, peaceful location in the Drakensburg mountains, about a 5 hour drive from Johannesburg. It was a nice little break to do not much else but spend time in prayer and reflection on the Lord.

Work has been busy, but good. We both have felt like we have actually been accomplishing some things lately, which is always nice encouragement to keep going! Jake has been doing well in school, although we are looking for a different school right now, as the one we have him in is just not meeting his needs. On the home front, things are good and we cannot believe that in less than 3 months we will have a 4 year old in our midst! On that note...

Jake's Quote of the Week

"I am the king of nothing!"

(Jake had been running around earlier in the day saying, "I am the King of Peace", which he had heard at school. Mommy corrected him in the ensuing theological discussion, and you can see how it went.)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God that he brought us closer to him this past week at the retreat. It was more fun and more beneficial than we expected it would be, and we didn't find ourselves as far behind as we had feared when we returned to the office.

Please remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- Lindiwe, the little girl that we play with at the orphanage, as she undergoes tests in a couple of weeks for a life-threatening illness

-- The search for a new school for Jake

--Unspoken request

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake