December 2002

From the Far Side

"Glory To God In The Highest & Peace To His People On Earth"

Dear Friends:

Greetings and blessings to all during this special season! At this time when we reflect on the meanings of this holiday, we note and give thanks for our friends and family and for all that we are blessed with. For all of this, we here in Amman are truly thankful. Being in mission service with the PC(USA) has perhaps not been the easiest endeavor we have ventured into, but one that has made us feel overwhelmed with blessings. We are able to serve the Christian church in ways that we both feel have a direct affect on our fellow Christians and Muslim neighbors, and touch lives that we otherwise may not be able to touch.

The project of Joining Hands Against Hunger in Egypt has finally produced a group of committed organizations that have come together under the name, "Together For Family Development." The group has started the process of creating a mission statement as follows: "To walk together in a coordinated effort to support the whole family and its needs, in order to develop economically, educationally and societally." Pretty general, but one of the main discussions has been focused on the needs of the whole family unit, not only children, not only women or one segment of the family. I see this as an important step forward because many of the organizations are focused more on programs for one segment of the family. It's positive that they recognize the weaknesses in specific programs that they are running.

Hala's work with the Middle East Council of Churches is going well also. She has been asked by the office that runs programs for the Palestinian and Iraqi refugees in Jordan to develop a program that will be more in line with sustainable development. This is a new idea for them, because up until now the programs that they have been running are generally very limited training courses with a certificate awarded at the end. There are some other programs as well, but none that offer any substantial future opportunities for the "in need" target group. All in all, we are staying busy and continuing our learning process of how it is that the Lord wants to use us here in Jordan.

Now with that said, I have to state here that I have been incredibly stuck on what to report to you next. After writing for some time, I went back and read what I had typed. I have to say I made myself depressed and had to use the delete key. This is because we hear countless stories now about families in Palestine who are suffering to an extent that brings tears to our eyes. Many families are not celebrating Christmas this year because they don't feel there is a reason for such joy. The current situation there is one more unbelievable than not. If I convey local thought about the issue of Iraq, a very important one, we'll be going down the same path. But I decided not to spread the depressing side of life in the Middle East, at least not this month. This month is a time of happiness and joy, celebration and reflection, family and friends. This month is a time to think about why we have the holiday of Christmas and what that means to us. Thus, I decided to ask Nadiim and Adeeb what Christmas means to them.

When I asked Adeeb what Christmas means to him, he said, "Uuuhhhh, sharing, uuuhhhh, presents, uuuhhhh, being good. I want to see snow outside, is it going to snow?" Nadiim tried to be a little bit more diplomatic to his father the missionary, "Uuummmm, sharing, loving, being together, uuummmm, did I say being together? [Yes, Nadiim] There is one other thing, but I don't think you'll like it. [What Nadiim?] Presents." Not bad answers for a five- and six-year-old, at least their first answer was sharing, but then could I really expect them not to list presents in on their list of importance?

Of course, the importance of the holiday is different for us all, and we all have individual thoughts and memories in connection with Christmas. I'll always remember our first Christmas with Nadiim, our eldest, when we put much thought into what type of gifts to get for our baby's first Christmas. After all of the time going from place to place to find what we thought would be perfect for him, he was more impressed with the wrapping paper than with the gifts. The important thing is that we all remember that we have the holiday of Christmas because of the birth of Christ. That we give gifts in rememberance of God's gift of His Son to us on Earth, and that because of that, it is a time of great joy.

May all of you have a joyous Noel!

Chris, Hala, Nadiim & Adeeb