Insurance for Jiko Use in the UK ...

It's been a while since I blogged... a little out of routine! Since the last entry, Tim and I enjoyed a lovely few days in Cornwall, which included a fun, interesting and useful day out at the Eden Project! I can't wait to get back to Tanzania to try out some healthy Baobab smoothies now! We were interested to see the Eden Project rainwater harvesting too and learn more about medicinal gardens!

Enjoying a coastal walk in Cornwall

We've enjoyed speaking at different meetings recently. I had the jiko going at a ladies' lunch in Tadley after going to great efforts to ensure that everything was insured and I wasn't breaking any laws lighting a fire in a public place! After several phone calls and emails, I was given the go-ahead and all proceeded safely and without incident! We had a really lovely time that morning, talking about "Hope in a Small Cake and Water Jar" and how God wants to use us to bring His transformation into people's lives and situations, no matter how empty or inadequate we feel we are.

Using a jiko in the UK! Health and Safety approved?!

We also enjoyed the opportunity to share with people last Saturday evening about the work have been doing and our heart behind it all. We will write it up for the next newsletter for those of you who were not able to make it to the evening but would like to know what is going on! As well as thanking all who have supported us so generously, enabling us to work in Tanzania, we wanted to share some important aspects of what is behind the work we do. Things like the importance of being in community with people, integrating all that we do into a cohesive whole of different practical work together with spiritual growth. We also mentioned the importance of encouraging, building-up and training people. We discussed poverty and the importance of diagnosing the nature of poverty before attempting a solution. We recommended two books we have found helpful, Transforming the World?: The gospel and social responsibility (edited by Jamie A Grant and Dewi A Hughes) and When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor… and Yourself (by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert). We in the west tend to think of poverty simply in terms of a lack of material things, failing to recognise its other dimensions of shame, powerlessness and hopelessness, all resulting out of a brokenness of their relationships with God, self, others and the rest of creation. We believe that the good news of the cross of Christ, sets the right framework for the healing of these relationships, so that people can live and work fruitfully as God intended.

Finally we ask for your continuing involvement as we return to Tanzania. We appreciate your prayers and support, and we want to encourage more communication as well. We know that many of our friends and supporters have experience and contacts that can help us. In particular for fund-raising for the project, we are aware that we need a fair bit of help! Please communicate with us your thoughts, advice, comments, suggestions! And likewise we want to keep communicating with you as best we can!

Thanks to Helping Hands in Tadley for their contribution to the Stoves Project!