December 22, 2007
Dear Friends, Brethren and family
Ni sa Bula Vinaka
HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON
Kathy and I wish for everyone a very Merry
and Safe Holiday Season. I have thought of a new verse for “dashing
thru the snow” it goes like this...... “driving up the road in a
3 cylinder car, hoping not to die, ducking rain drops all the way”.
As many of you know the seasons in the Northern Hemisphere and
here in the Southern Hemisphere are opposite. We are going into our summer (rainy
season) and the temperatures usually vary between 78-90 with 60-100% humidity.
If it is still in the upper 80’s when we go to bed at night we have to
use the Air Conditioner in the bedroom. Central climate control here means having
the louver windows wide open and all the fans going. So far we have only used
the A/C twice. There is something about waking up in a pool of water knowing
that we don’t have a personal bladder problem and that it isn’t
the waterbed bladder leaking because we have a regular mattress.
Another sidebar to living in Fiji is the local people do a lot
of burning of yard trash/rubbish and this time of the year they cook a lot of
lovo’s (food cooked on hot rocks in the back yard). The rocks having to
be heated with piles of burning wood. Since we live up on a hill and can see
the valleys and the ocean we usually get the smoke and smells from the legion
of fires. “What a lovely view “cough, cough”! Louvre windows
do not stop smoke very well.
WEATHER
With CNN on Sky Pacific we were able to see the latest ice storm
which hit our home town, Joplin Missouri and the area. With internet connection
(don’t get me started on that) we were able to read the local paper and
see pictures of the damage. Our son, Jason and his family were without power
for almost a week.
We had weather here as well with cyclone Daman starting up Northeast of the
Fiji Islands group. It came West, headed South and the first warnings had it
aimed right through Lautoka were we live (Northeast of Nadi on the map). However
the Lord was great and Daman ended up going straight East and just clipping
the the Northern most of the islands and but still causing over $400,000 worth
of damage before turning South away from Fiji. They have forecast 5-7 cyclones
this year. We have been in several when we lived in Okinawa and Vanuatu and
don’t need the experience.
PERSONAL HAPPENINGS
I have been able to put more work in on the computer with courses for the proposed
school as well as getting all our old newsletters and pictures put on a CD.
This represents our Missionary work from 1973-2007. It really brought back a
lot of memories. If you would like a copy of the CD drop me a note with a physical
address and we would be happy to send you a copy. (I won’t do what Benny
Hinn does and say I will send it for a donation of $100 or more.)
I am also correcting the Fiji/English Songbook we put together
when we were in Vanuatu. We are slowly picking up the pronunciation and meaning
of some of the Fijian.
We are STILL waiting to get the Bible School started here. In
the new year we are planning to rent a room in one of the local housing areas
in Lautoka on Sundays to start an English speaking service and if needed rent
it for some special classes. We have singing and prayer at different houses
here in Lautoka on Friday nights. We have been advertising for World Bible School
Courses in the local newspaper and have been told that 18 students are now studying
through our sponsoring congregation. This will give us some more contacts in
the near future. We still have a number of people here who still express an
interest in full-time Bible study once we get the Christian Institute of Biblical
Studies up and running. We need congregations and individuals to step up and
help us with this need. Can you help? Do you know anyone who can help?
PRINTING EQUIPMENT
In November I wrote that the printing equipment had been shipped from Vanuatu
and was in the process of being cleared here in Fiji. Here
is the rest of the story: After initially being lead to believe that
we would be able to get the equipment in without duty the Revenue & Customs
people here are getting greedy. This same equipment (in better condition) was
allowed in duty free in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu. Go figure!
I even drove down to Suva, 3 hours over three hours back, and talked face to
face with the customs people, wasting a whole day. They were still wanting invoices
for everything in the shipment. Since we did not have invoices the Customs department
here in Fiji valued it at $5,040 with $1,450 duty. It cost us $2,300 to ship
it here. We have sent a letter to the customs department explaining that the
equipment is not worth anything to anyone but us and that it is to be used for
education purposes. When they told us their valuation and what they wanted in
Custom’s Duty I told them we are not prepared nor do we wish to pay $1,450
duty so unless they waver duty on the shipment they can keep it. We have since
found out that the Finance Minister has the authority (and he is the only one
who can) to waiver the custom and fiscal tax on this shipment. A Christian in
Suva talked with the Finance department and was told that we needed to send
a letter and they would consider our situation, so we sent a letter to the Finance
Department pleading our case. They said it would take two weeks but with the
Holidays it will probably take three weeks. We will also be liable for storage
charges on a day to day basis (it has already been here over 6 weeks). This
doesn’t even include the charges the customs broker charges and getting
the shipment from Suva to Lautoka. If they do not waiver the customs duty then
we will wait until the shipment is auctioned off. We might get it this way.
VISITOR
We were able to see and catch up with Herman Alexander recently here in Fiji.
Herman is from Texas and was teaching some classes in Suva. He teaches at the
South Pacific Bible College in New Zealand as well. We first met him there in
New Zealand through our connection with the Bible College. Kathy was the College
secretary at the time. Herman had finished his Suva courses and was on his way
back home. We met him at Nadi airport and sat and chatted for awhile until he
had to board his flight.
THE JOYS OF MODERN CONVENIENCES
It is great to have internet connection where we have instant communication
with friends and family all over the world. Unless.......an ice storm knocks
out the email server and resets your personal password (finally corrected after
many emails and 4 days) or the local DSL connection goes faulty like here in
Fiji where at times the connection can last as long as 2 minutes before it goes
off. That’s fun when one is trying to send and receive emails. Or talk
on Yahoo Messenger to the grandkids! Grrrrrrrrrr... They say we have too much
noise in the phone lines and they have to wait for the new budget before they
can replace them. Somedays the connection stays on for hours, like today, thank
you! Somedays it would have been better to just go outside and yell!
RECREATION
Because I put so much time in on the computer I try to get out in the early
mornings and get some exercise before it gets too hot and humid. I play what
I call “hit and find”. A bit like “hide and seek” but
I hit a golf ball and then try to find it! The local course here has fairways
which have ankle deep grass and the rough is shoulder high stuff, The rough
is made up of gardens of cassava plants (tended by local people who live around
the golf course) and/or over-grown sections of garden with thick elephant grass.
I seem to lose just as many golf balls in the fairway as the rough. I have thought
of gluing strings on the golf balls and following that string where the ball
is, 15 feet should be long enough! Kathy used to walk along with me but it gets
too hot too quick right now so I go out on my own. I know that is not wise and
it should be the buddy system like snorkeling. One day I fear I will go in the
rough looking for an errant golf ball but will never find my way back to the
fairway. I do have a bush knife in my golf bag now for such a time! (“Oh,
he’ll never return, oh he’ll never return and his fate is still
unknown....”) FORE>>>>>>>>>>>or was that
FIVE?
PRAYER REQUESTS
Please pray and consider the following needs we still have: (feel free to copy
and send this email to any and everyone you know for their consideration)
1. Personal support: we have about $2900 monthly. The
budget we have proposed we need an additional $600 plus $800 monthly for work
fund expenses. We have been able to cope up until now on what we are getting
but will need to get additional funds especially as we get more involved in
the work here.
2. Printing Equipment: Customs charged wavered and the storage charges not too
high.
3. "The Christian Institute of Biblical Studies - Fiji"
>Immediate funds of $50,000 to buy land and build basic facilities (URGENT!)
>Additional funds to update facilities: classroom, office, student &
faculty housing $75,000-$125,000
>Monthly funds of $3,600 for 5 years or until the school can be self supporting
from planted cash crops
Funds can be send to (remember end of year contributions for IRS deductions.
give to Uncle Sam or the Lord's work)
Our sponsor:
CIBS c/o Mt Hope church of Christ
2830 Mt Hope Road
Webb City MO 64870
or you can contact my son about helping or even buying my truck <j13huff@yahoo.com>
Thank you so much for all who presently financially support this work and especially
all your prayers for us and the work. We beseech you for your continuance of
both.
Tobey & Kathy