Back from CIT

Team Bills at the Center for Intercultural Training at Union Mills, NC! Below is the whole crew in attendance with us. (with a few faces blocked because they are missionaries going to closed countries) For the last 5 weeks Team Bills attended CIT's program to prepare missionary families to make and sustain a successful transition to a foreign field. All of us attended class from 8:30am to 3:30pm everyday. We post the adult schedule below to give you some idea of the scope of topics we engaged. The kids also dipped into many of these topics as was appropriate for their ages. We also list some of our favorite activities and memories we carry away from CIT.  Fellowshipped with missionaries being sent from New Zealand to Serbia Listened to the Spirit, looked into our hearts Stole away to eat excellent local ice cream Johnny Mo learned how to ride a bike...no training wheels! Cooked and consumed a cornucopia of cultural cuisine—Mediterranean, Japanese, Ghanaian, Ethiopian, Scottish, Slovakian, Thai, and the strange land of Wendy’s Epic competition in various sports—Ping Pong, Pool, Soccer, and a new favorite card game--Dutch Blitz Team building with Legos Got a speeding ticket Worshipped with Cole Mill Road Church in Durham and with Ghanaians in Charlotte, NC Grilled Farmington Beef for CITers Heard multiple stories of God's faithfulness in the lives of God's servants Celebrated two birthdays—Jenni and Rubes Laughed, cried, prayed, and worshipped the God of all peoples   Scroll through the pictures below for a taste of our CIT experience.

One of the issues we've discussed at CIT is the experience of children on the mission field. So we thought we'd ask for you . .   HEY TEAM BILLS... WHAT IS A THIRD CULTURE KID? Click on Judah to hear some reflections. Now here's a textbook definition: "A Third Culture Kid (TCK) is a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside of the parents' culture. The TCK frequently builds relationships to all the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture are assimilated into the TCK’s life experience, the sense of belonging is in relationship to others of similar background.” Pollock and Van Reken, Third Culture Kids COOK UP A LITTLE GHANA GOODNESS! Our family has enjoyed getting to eat Jollof Rice, a staple dish of Ghanaian cuisine. Most recently we partook of the dish when we were invited to eat with Benjamin and Rejoice Adjagah in Charlotte. Rejoice is the daughter of Samuel Twumasi-Ankrah, president of Heritage Christian College. Click on the picture of jollof rice for a YouTube tutorial recommended by Rejoice or read this article for a recipe.

Remaining Days in the US Over the next 4 weeks we are getting to know the Central Church of Christ in Little Rock, AR. We are staying with Jenni's parents who live in Little Rock (so the kids are getting plenty of attention). We will be back in Tullahoma on July 5-9 and 18-21. We fly out for Accra from Nashville on July 21st. Thank you to all our supporters--churches and individuals. We can't play our part in the body of Christ without you!