122008 Newsletter

FAY FOOTPRINTS Lutheran Bible Translators

For our last newsletter of 2008, we reflect back on the year in a series of “Top 10” lists. We hope your year has been a blessed one, as well, and that you have a joyous Christmas season! 10 changes in 2008 (in chronological order): 1) We officially became missionaries with LBT! 2) Sam learned to walk and then run… 3) We finished initial coursework in Dallas. 4) We said goodbye to friends in Dallas and met lots of new ones in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas. 5) We learned that we’ll soon be a family of four! (Oh, and Sam is getting a cousin!). 6) Sam learned to make bigger messes, play pretend, and do chores (throw things in the trash and put toys back). 7) Kory got glasses so he can see a little better when he’s on the road. 8) Cara chopped her hair off 11” to give to locks of love. 9) Sam’s English vocabulary increased from 2 words to about 50. His parents increased their French vocabulary by a couple of hundred words. 10) We’ve spent more time with family and old friends while we stay for a couple of weeks/months at a time near (or with!) various folks. Top 10 PD moments (in no particular order): PD, by the way, is short for partnership development, which involves speaking to churches, Bible studies, etc. If you’d like us to visit your church, let us know! 1) Getting lost on our way to our very first presentation and arriving 5 minutes before the service, instead of 20 minutes, which was the original plan. 2) Trying to give a presentation while Sam stood behind us and played peek-a-boo with the Bible study class. 3) Watching Sam help, in his own way, by smiling up a storm and shaking hands. 4) Hearing gasps from the crowd when they realize the great need for Bible translation. 5) Meeting young people who also feel called to missions. 6) Receiving the generous hospitality of strangers and friends, time and time again. 7) Q & A time– we love answering questions, even if we don’t always know the answers! It’s fun talking about what you want to talk about. 8) Becoming so comfortable with our presentation that the nervousness has basically worn off and all that’s left is excitement! 9) Going to the front of a church to be introduced and having Sam yell out “Hot! Hot!” repeatedly while pointing at lit candles. 10) Receiving so many encouraging words, both in person and through email. Your prayers keep us going. The Top 5 Sam moments: 5) Sam’s favorite baby sitter is whoever is mowing the lawn. It’s mesmerizing. 4) One week, while Cara’s parents were on vacation, Sam missed the ritual of kissing moe-ma and papa goodnight, so he found his picture book (his own idea) and kissed their pictures instead. 3) He had his own pumpkin this year and after Halloween we decided that it would be fun to let him smash it on the porch. Afterward, we told him the pumpkin broke and he helped put it in the trash. Ever since then, whenever he sees a pumpkin, he announces: “Boke. Chash” (Translation: Broke. Trash.) 2) Learning to pray… from holding out his hands to hold ours, to saying “amem”, to babbling while someone else prays, to crying when Kory forgot to say his nighttime prayer and calming instantly when he remembered. 1) Cara: What does a cow say? Sam: ooooo C: What does a dog say? S: Woof C: What does a cat say? S: Oww C: What does Dada say? S: No no no. Don’t touch.”

If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.

John 13:14-15

December 2008

Pray For Us...

Volume 1, Issue 6

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Praise God for the wonderful relationships cultivated and the overall response we have received from the churches and individuals we have already visited.

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Pray for a healthy pregnancy for Cara.

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Pray for us as we travel, that we would go/share/do as He leads.

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Pray for our French language learning, that we would have increased motivation even though it may be several months before we begin formal schooling in France.

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Pray that more people will consider this ministry not just ours but theirs, as well.

Making new friends

Partnership Update

Cameroonian Food If you study different cultures around the world, you will notice that like the United States, most include food as a major part of their celebrations. Since this is the holiday season, we thought we’d share a bit about what Cameroonians eat! Once again, Cameroon lives up to the name “Africa in miniature” when it comes to food. There are many different staples depending on where you are in the country, so we’ll share some of the things we ate at a West African restaurant in Dallas where both owners were from Cameroon and at a lunch made by Pam Maxey, an LBT missionary who served in Cameroon for 12 years. The dish that serves as the base of the meal (similar to rice or pasta or bread) is fufu (pronounced foo-foo) or couscous (“coos-coos”… not the same as the round rice-like grain that you find at the grocery store). It is made of cassava (a root plant) that has been boiled, dried, and ground into a flour. Water is then added to make a paste and it’s rolled into balls. Theoretically, you are supposed to swallow them without chewing. They are very bland, cheap, and filling. The couscous is usually topped with some sort of sauce, the most common being Ndolé (pronounced nn-doe-lay). It is made with bitterleaf or some sort of

Write to us at: Kory, Cara, and Samuel Fay 848 Balroyal Ct. Indianapolis, IN 46234 [email protected] www.fayfootprints.com

As you can probably tell from the front of this newsletter, we have felt incredibly blessed during this time of partnership development. We have raw green (spinach, kale, etc.), ground loved getting to meet so many peopeanuts, seasonings, meat (fish is often used), chicken broth, various peppers, ple, hear their stories, and see them and tomatoes. When we first heard get excited about Bible translation! what was in it, we were a little skepti- We are blessed to have so many of cal, but it tastes wonderful! you praying for us and to receive Our favorite food, of the ones we’ve your donations. However, we are tried, has definitely been fried plantains, also known as dodo (“doe doe”). always looking for more partners! If They look like very large bananas and you are looking for a way to tithe in you can find them in most grocery the coming year, please ask the Lord stores here in the U.S. They are sliced if He would have you give toward this and fried in oil. They are a little bit sweet and taste like a hybrid of carrot, ministry. We have about 25% of our potato, and banana, so they taste great ministry expenses coming in each covered in the aforementioned sauce or month and we need 100% before we plain with a dash of salt. Pictured above are each of the foods: dodo, cous- can leave in August. If He is not leading you to give regularly but you cous, and ndolé with uncut plantains. would like to give in some way, conIn His Love, sider giving to our household set-up Kory, Cara, and Sam project which will help us buy things we need for our house in Cameroon (furniture and so on). We currently have $2,682 toward our goal of $10,000 for that project. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your generosity!

Send financial support to: Lutheran Bible Translators P.O. Box 2050 Aurora, IL 60507-2050 (Make checks out to Lutheran Bible Translators and designate Fay ministry or Fay Household Setup)

The mission of LBT is to help bring people to faith in Jesus Christ by making the Word of God available to those who do not yet have it in the language of their hearts. For more information on LBT go to www.lbt.org