At the Airport (by Thom)

I had an interesting cultural experience last week. A while back Amanda's laptop died. We thought we'd try to push through it and see how things went. We have a desktop computer that she used, but it's hooked up directly to our TV and was often difficult to read unless she was sitting right in front of it. After a couple of months here in Senegal it became clear that she would do a lot better having her own laptop again so I started looking for deals. In August I found a great deal on a new laptop that came with a second, smaller 'netbook' for only $100 more. We had just received a nice love offering from a church and decided this was the right time to move so I made the order. We had a colleague traveling to the US who offered to bring them back with her when she returned at the end of October. Last Friday, she arrived back in country but without our new computers. "They were seized at the airport," she reported. "They said we're only allowed to bring in one laptop per person and I already had mine plus your two computers." So, it was off to the airport for me.
Upon arriving I went right to the customs office. Standing outside the door to the office was about 25 men, each petitioning to be my 'personal assistant' for the work there. I realized that I didn't know the way around so I selected a guy to help me out. Following him we walked back to a window where we were handed paperwork (after paying a fee) that needed to be filled out. While standing there, I heard someone call out my helper's name (Keita - pronounced KAY-ta). I recognized the last name: "You're not Senegalese, are you?" I asked. "No", he replied, "I'm from Mali." I was happy to hear that, since we spent four years in Mali. I had found a brother. I told him that I used to live there and my local name is Ouaterra (WA-ter-ra). From that point on, the helper was my good friend as well!
He next led me to an office where they assessed the value of the two computers. I had my original receipt with me and the assessor determined that I needed to pay $394 in duty-taxes. I was floored by this. I expected to have to pay some money but this was too much. I pleaded my case that this not something I was planning on selling and we needed the computers for our work in the country. The assessor said he agreed with me but his job was just to assess. I'd have to plead my case before the chief of the customs. So that was our next stop.
I talked to the chief there and told him the same things I told the assessor but he kept saying they only allow one laptop per person. Disheartened, we got up to leave and on the way out the chief informed us he'd make an exception in our case! Praise the Lord, he was saying that I wouldn't just get a discount - I'd get through free-and-clear! This opened up a whole new round of going to various offices in the area. Back-and-forth we walked from office to office, each time getting new forms, making copies, and shaking many, many hands along the way. I had to pay 20 cents here, 40 cents there for paperwork, but nothing too substantial. Finally, we were able to go pick up the laptops. They were being guarded in an office. We looked them over, verified they were the correct computers, and then took one back to the head of the customs so he could see what he had exempted. We got his final signature and stamp and were able to leave with the computers. I thanked my new Malian friend and paid him a little for his help. All together, I spent about 4 hours making the rounds and spent about $40 on paperwork and my assistant but it was a great experience. I made a nice connection at the office (may be handy in the future - you never know!), practiced my French skills more than I had in the last 4 months combined, and got to represent the mission well to people who barely know we (Christians) exist.
Best of all, it's much easier now for Amanda to receive and confirm reservations for the guest house, making the lives much easier for the other missionaries around us that we get to serve!

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McMurray Update/October Edition

Today we sent out our latest update letter. If you're not on our mailing list you can see download the letter right here (pdf):

McMurray Update / October Edition

If you would like to receive our update letters (and emails with urgent prayer requests) and you're not on our list you can join by clicking this link and entering your name and email in the form on the right.

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Video Games and Children's Prayers (by Amanda)

(Note: this is our first attempt experimenting with video in our blog posts. Please let us know if you have problems or if you like this feature. We can try to do it more often.)

Miri loves to play bowling on the Wii with her Daddy. It is too cute. She can even do the game all by herself. In case it's hard to see/hear what's in the video, Miri first knocks down 9 pins then picks up the spare. On her final throw she gets a strike and exclaims, "Yeah! I got them all! I got a strike! I got a strike!" Not to shame anyone, but at three years old, Miri is averaging a 105 in bowling.

In this 2nd (very short) video Miri and Hannah are 'sword dueling'. Hannah never wins but they have fun anyway.

At meal times after thanking God for their food, friends, family, and stuffed animals they thank Him for the Wii games. I am so thankful that Miri and Hannah enjoy praying at meal times.

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Pictures

Like this picture? Want to see more? We have 1,196 other pictures in the photo section of our website, including the 17 other new pictures I added today.

By the way, can anyone guess which is Miriam and which is Hannah?

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Health Concerns - Update (by Thom)

I mentioned a while back that we were trying a major change in our diets in response to some health problems I was having. I know I talked a bit about the humorous struggle to buy a cheeseburger without bread but I haven't really given any updates on how it's all going, despite all the emails I've gotten from people asking how it's going.
Since August 23rd, we cut gluten completely out of my diet. While I tested negative for Celiac's disease, we thought we'd give the diet a trial run and see how it goes. Almost immediately we started seeing results. I noticed less 'creakiness' in my knees and more energy in general. I haven't had any of the GI/stomach problems that I had - which is pretty remarkable considering that I had GI problems at least once a week for the last 4-5 years. We also received a pretty strong confirmation that we're doing the right thing when, on my birthday last week, we had lunch out at a restaurant. I forgot there would be wheat in the mushroom sauce when I ordered and about 4 hours later I was experiencing some painful cramping. I know that doesn't sound like fun, but I was very excited to get a sense that we're on the right track! I also recently noticed that my elbows had stopped locking up if I rested them in the same place too long.
There have been other 'improvements' to my health - things that just seem to be working better than they had in a long time.
We really appreciate all the prayers through this time of change. It has been a bit of a challenge for Amanda to find foods to cook that don't contain gluten. We have been able to get a few things shipped out from the US (thanks, Mom!) and we've found more alternatives here than we imagined were available, but we still really appreciate you continuing to pray for us through this time.

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Books (by Thom)

Amanda took the kids to the library today. We're really blessed to be living so close to Dakar Academy, a boarding school for missionary kids. I've been told it's the largest English-language library in West Africa. A couple of times per week they walk over to the school and come back with 6 or 7 new books to read. I love reading to the girls and the way they select them is hilarious; they don't care what the story is about but if the front of the book is pink or orange (Miri) or green or blue (Hannah) they will love the book. I guess you can judge a book by its cover! :)
We love this easy access to new stories but it got me thinking this afternoon about how poor the access is here to the Greatest Story Ever Told. According to Operation World (a phenomenal resource, by the way. You can buy it directly from them), there are about 12 million people in Senegal, of which about 450,000 are Christians. Of the remaining 11,550,000 people, about one in three can read. Even among those people, very few have the complete scriptures in their own language. The largest language spoken in Senegal is Wolof but there are 38 other languages spoken in this country. There are only three full Bible translations, three New Testaments (including Wolof) and 19 other translations in process.
I know I have the tendency to take my Bible for granted. I have a digital copy on my PDA (which is my primary use) and a couple of nicer, leather-bound Bibles in my house. We have picture versions for Miri & Hannah and we have French translations for when we worship in that language. With all these available it's so easy to slip into 'careless-mode' and forget how desperate others are for the Word of God. I know none of this is new information to you but I remember a story one of my colleagues told me when we were in Mali. He lives in a very remote village where there (at the time) were no believers but rather everyone followed either the majority religion or a traditional ethnic religion. Despite this, the elders were so eager for a Bible translation in their own language that they committed personally to making sure that it got done.

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September Car Fund Update

Once we found out we were going to be moving from Mali to Senegal to serve the mission from the Regional Office, we were faced with the task of raising funds for a new car. In Mali we had a 10 year old Jeep Cherokee, which served us well but was unable to make the move with us. In many countries over there you cannot import a vehicle over 5 years old. So for the past several months we've been mentioning to churches, family, and friends that in order to buy a car we need to raise funds. Our goal is $25,000. That's not a magic number or anything, and probably won't allow us to buy a new car (vehicles are much more expensive in West Africa), but it's our goal. If we can raise more we will be able to buy a sturdier, newer vehicle.

In September we received a gift of $80 bringing our total to $14,659 or 58.6% of our goal. To borrow an idea from the United Way, here's our fund-raising thermometer which didn't move this month:

If you would like to help with this need there are a couple of options. You can send a tax-deductible gift to:

The C&MA
Thom McMurray Vehicle Special
P. O. Box 35000
Colorado Springs, CO 80935

There's also a secure way to make your donation on-line, through the C&MA's website. If this interests you, click here.

Thanks for considering this and praying for us. We'll keep this updated and hopefully start to see this car turn more red in the months to come.

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What Makes a Cheeseburger a Cheeseburger? (by Thom)

We had one of those 'head-scratcher' moments this past weekend.
Here in Dakar there is a chain of fast-food restaurants. Actually, each of the restaurants offer three choices: a burger joint (think McDonalds), a chicken place (like KFC), and a pizza place (a Pizza Hut knock-off). One awesome thing about these places is that they deliver for only $1! I had ordered from the chicken place a few time recently because with my dietary issues I can't have anything from the pizza place or burger joint. This past Sunday I was feeling tired of chicken so I decided to try something. I called them up and placed the order for Amanda and the twins. Then, I asked if they could send me a mushroom cheeseburger but with no buns. The man on the phone replied, "I'm sorry, sir, but that's not possible." I explained to him that I had an issue with bread and couldn't even eat anything that had touched bread, so couldn't pick it off myself. Again, "I'm sorry, sir. That's not possible." I tried 4 or 5 times to convince the man that he should sell me a bun-less burger but to no avail. Eventually I broke down and ordered chicken.
When the delivery came it was the man who answers the phone bringing our food. He explained to me the reason he couldn't sell me a bun-less burger: "We sell cheeseburgers. If we take the bread off the sandwich it's no longer a burger so we can't sell that." I honestly didn't know how to respond to that.
In the local cultures here there is a rigid adherence to the program. Flexible thinking is not something that people do, much less understand and because it's so tightly ingrained into the culture most people don't even realize they can't 'think outside the box'. During dinner Amanda and I were talking about issues Americans have that are similar (that is, times when we are so used to something that we don't stop to think about another way). Amanda's first though was the American commitment to materialism. In the US we are so indoctrinated with the idea of the American Dream that we don't really stop and think about the implications of it. It's assumed we will want the latest electronics, to own our own house, to have a cell phone, to subscribe to cable TV, or to drive a new car. I'm not specifically criticizing any of those options but rather the blind-following of those ideals.
During our meal we came up with other 'issues' in cultures that get passed down generationally with little questioning of them. Sometimes these chains get broken but sadly they often don't: racism, greed, the breakdown of the family, and the list could go on.
I haven't figured out how I'm going to get a bun-less mushroom cheeseburger yet, but I do know how to pray when I get frustrated with this cultural issue.

Nehemiah 1:5-6 (NASB) "O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands, ⁶ let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you.

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A Call to Techies Out There (by Thom)

(9/7/09 Update:) I received an invite. Now to figure out how to use this thing....

(Original Post:) If any of our friends who read this blog have gotten an invitation to Google Wave, would you consider using one of your invites on us? I'm constantly looking for ways to improve our ministry communication and this new method has be intrigued! You may use the email address in the right-hand sidebar to invite us. Thanks!

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