An interesting story

Here is something you don't see everyday. If you read the rest of the blog entry you will find out why I put in a picture of a chimp. We took this picture in the Canary Islands.

And people keep telling me I don't put enough pictures of Kristen on the blog!! Well here you go. :-)

Hello Everyone,

Just a quick note to say hello. We haven't been up to much here lately except for going to school and studying. We had a long weekend this past week so week took advantage of the the beautiful weather and went biking for three days. Not three days straight. We actually went to Geneva on Friday and saw X-Men 3 which was nice to see but I still like the first two the best. Thursday, Saturday and Sunday after church, we went biking around this region. It has been really good to get out and see the country at a slower pace and get some good exercise at the same time.

It's actually starting to get a little warm here now and when I say warm I only mean like 80 to 85 degrees. It's not that bad but we are thinking Oh God, Please help us because once we get to Africa we'll never get a break from the heat. I guess it is good to be here without AC because we will be there without AC so it is kind of breaking us in to help us get used to living without it. We are getting ready to go and are very excited. The other missionaries in Cameroon will help us get set up once we are there. So once we are there, the tone of our blog will change a bit with more things pertaining to the ministry we will be doing in Cameroon until we are able to set up a nice website for the ministry side.

Ok, so I heard an interesting story the other day about Cameroon. According to a Scientist at the University of Alabama at Birmigham, scientists have cofirmed that the the origin of AIDS is from a group of Chimpanzees found in Cameroon in the Southern Provence where we will be living. Is that weird or what? I don't know if it is absolutely 100% certain but it sounds legit. If you want to read more about it, you can click on the Interesting Story Link. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,197024,00.html

Thank you to all of you who continue to keep up with us, pray for us and support us. We know that you are a big a part of the ministry that God has called us to in Cameroon. You help make our dreams possible and we don't want to take that for granted! I know our blog hasn't been that ministry oriented since we have been here in language school but we have had to remind ourselves that right this minute our ministry is to learn the language of the people whom God has called us to. A lot a times we want instant results but sometimes instant results don't stand the test until the overall goal is completed. We are committed to the end goal and right now that committment has led us to language school which is something that has taken a lot of time and even money but it is a necessary step to take so that we can be committed longterm and be able to reap lasting results.

Thanks for your prayers during this time of our lives and thanks for praying for us as we prepare to go to Cameroon. We know for a fact it will not be an easy road or life in Cameroon but we are ready for what God wants to accomplish through our obedience to His Call. Keep in touch. We love you guys.

Horrible Bloggers!!!

Hello Everyone,

If there is anyone still checking our blog, it would be a miracle, but thanks to those of you who are still interested. We have been horrible bloggers. We just spent a couple of weeks with my Mom and Dad and we had a really nice time. We were able to take a break from french and do a little traveling. We were able to see a few places that we never thought we would have the opportunity to see and we really enjoyed seeing my parents. We will probably not have the opportunity to see them for another two years, so this was a real blessing to us. Here are a few pictures of the the places we we able to see. You might have to scroll down to get to the first ones, but they are there. Check back and we will try to keep you updated.

By the way, we will be leaving for Cameroon very soon. We are excited, and we know that God has used this time in France to prepare us for the work he has called us to there. We appreciate your prayers as we make yet another transition to finally get to where God has called us. We are expecting great things in Cameroon. We believe God has a great plan for the Continent of Africa and we are greatful to be a part of the harvest fields of Cameroon. Once we arrive in Cameroon, we are not sure but we will more than likely live in the city of Ebolowa, which we are not sure if the internet connection is so great but we hear they have one there now and we will definately keep everyone updated. Thanks again for taking an interest in our lives.Joel and Kristen

All roads lead to Rome just isn't true!!

On our way to the famous castle in Germany we were able to see some of Austria. It was an absolutely beautiful place.


Just below the Castle, which is called Neuschwanstein (probabably pronounced like NOY SCHAWN STINE) there is a really nice lake. The sun was just beginning to set, but you can still see the beautiful mountain backdrop.



This was taken from Mary's Bridge which gave us a really nice view of the Castle.




Question:
What does 17 years, plus a lot of tired dudes, plus 200 million US Dollars make?

Answer:
This castle that King Ludwig lived in for only 6 months before he died at the age of 43.

Is this thing really leaning....

Pisa was one of the first places we stopped off to see in Italy. We only spent a couple of hours here, but it was a really awesome experience. I am not so sure that if the tower hadn't ending up leaning that Pisa would be so popular. But none the less what an awesome thing to see.



Could you please just hurry up and take the stupid picture! This thing is getting really heavy!



The Colleseum The Colliseum and Rome altogether was an awesome experience. We are so grateful to have had this opportunity.

Here is a nice picture with Kristen and my parents. If you hadn't noticed, Kristen got a nice haircut before they came.

The Roman Forum

Awesome, Awesome, Awesome!! That's about all I can say about the Roman Forum.