The Fosters

Wycliffe's Special Christmas Gift for Musoma

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:43:23 -0500

Wycliffe's Special Christmas Gift for Musoma :

Aired today on CBN News and 700 Club: CBN’s George Thomas presents the first publications of Luke 1&2 in the Mara Cluster. This is excellent coverage of the work that so many of you reading this are a part of. Thanks to everyone involved in putting this together.

Make a 'free' donation to Vision 2025!

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:39:00 -0500

Make a 'free' donation to Vision 2025!:

No strings attached and it just takes one mouse click. I’ve done it twice!

I LOVE THIS!!! God’s Word goes out in 9 languages of...

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 09:08:00 -0500

I LOVE THIS!!! God’s Word goes out in 9 languages of Northwestern Tanzania! It’s torture for Ranette and I to not be there. I guess we’ll have to cheer from Canada! Today, the whole cluster project and guests will celebrate this monumental achievement. In just over 3 years from it’s implementation, the Mara Cluster project has printed Luke 1&2 in the following languages: Ikizu, Zanaki, Ngoreme, Kwaya, Jita, Simbiti, Kabwa, Ikoma, and Zinza. These two chapters contain the story of Christ’s birth and now, for the first time, people in all of these language communities will be able to read this incredible news in their heart language… a Christmas I’m sure they’ll never forget.

I think of all the obstacles and challenges we’ve overcome. God bless everyone who has had a hand in this (thousands if you really think about it!). Congratulations to all the staff and everyone on the ground who made this possible. What an AWESOME day!

The home stretch!

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:11:17 -0500

One more speaking engagement on the east coast to finish off the tour. It’s amazing to be able to share our story in so many different parts of Canada and even more exciting to see people catching the vision.

We’re off to New Brunswick today so that means another few days on the road. Not sure how I’ll fare over-nighting in Quebec though. Everytime I open my mouth to speak in French, Swahili comes out.

Mwasembe arrives home safely.

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 12:51:00 -0400

I spoke with Mwasembe on the phone last Friday as he was on the last leg of his trip home. I caught him on a bus near a large town (Iringa) in southern Tanzania. He said that the trip had gone well and he was appreciative for everyone’s prayers.

We said farewell to Mwasembe last night...

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:16:17 -0400

It was an emotional good-bye to our friend Wiliadi Haridi Mwasembe as we waved him off last night at Pearson International Airport. Mwasembe has been an awesome guest and having him be a part of our family here in Canada for the last 3 months has changed us forever. I think it’s fair to say the same for him! I remember 5 years ago as part of our orientation to life in Africa, we had to do a home-stay in a remote village in Northern Cameroun for 3 weeks. It’s the closest thing I can relate to Mwasembe’s experience but I know it doesn’t even come close! He’s touched many lives here and looking back, we can say that the whole experience was definitely worth every bit of effort that went into having him come to Canada.

We were incredibly grateful to run into John and Glenna Peterson (missionaries from Mwanza, Tanzania) at the airport who were headed to Dar es Salaam on the exact same flights as Mwasembe. What a blessing!

Pray for Mwasembe as he completes the 4-5 day journey back to his home in Southern Tanzania. Check out some photos over at flickr that highlight his trip here.

Mwasembe is only in Canada for a couple more weeks and...

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:08:41 -0400

Mwasembe is only in Canada for a couple more weeks and it’s been awesome having him share with us in so many places. A comment was made last Sunday in Bancroft by someone who said, “It just makes it all so real hearing him tell his story.” Anyways, here’s a short clip of him giving an introduction at Central Pentecostal in Fergus. He talks about his first impressions of Canada. It’s hilarious!

"I have found that there are three stages in every great work of God: first, it is impossible, then..."

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:17:20 -0400

“I have found that there are three stages in every great work of God: first, it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done.”

- J. Hudson Taylor

An Amazing Race for An Amazing Cause (via 100huntley)

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 09:12:20 -0400

An Amazing Race for An Amazing Cause (via 100huntley)

"Success where you are can be the greatest hindrance to going where Jesus wants us to be."

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 19:24:55 -0400

“Success where you are can be the greatest hindrance to going where Jesus wants us to be.”

- Henry Blackaby

BurlingtonPost.com: Josiah Foster

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:37:37 -0400

BurlingtonPost.com: Josiah Foster:

Josiah makes his debut at Ribfest in Spencer Park on the weekend!

Being Part of a Team

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:07:39 -0400

We had a great long weekend and shared our testimony in two churches on Sunday, first in Port Hope and then at Shepherd Village in Toronto. It’s so humbling when people approach us and tell us that they follow our updates and pray for us. Sometimes I think we’re the most blessed people in the world! That people are gathering together with the sole purpose of praying for us is so humbling. It reminds me that we are NEVER alone in this work and that what we do is just one part of a much larger team.

Mwasembe goes to the Dentist! As you can imagine Mwasembe and I...

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 11:34:00 -0400

Mwasembe goes to the Dentist! As you can imagine Mwasembe and I are having a lot of fun exploring things that are new to him here in Canada… I really need to post more pics (and I will) but I had to get this one up! Last week Mwasembe got a really bad tooth ache and some friends at People’s church in Hamilton put us in touch with Dr. Stephen Hambly in Ancaster.

Dr. Hambly is no stranger to going out and providing dental services free of charge in developing nations but this might have been the first time the ‘mission field’ came into his office right here in Canada! Mwasembe was in and out in no time and couldn’t believe how painless it all was.

We’re incredibly grateful to Dr. Hambly and his staff for their generosity and wish them all the best!

10 Year Anniversary

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 11:19:02 -0400

It’s hard to believe that Ranette and I were married on this day in 1999 exactly 10 years ago. We’ve lived in British Columbia, Ontario, Cameroon, and Tanzania. Half of our marriage has been spent in Africa. We have two awesome boys, Josiah (4) and Isaac (2) and are living our life’s dreams. Here’s to another 10!

It’s not too early to start thinking about Christmas!

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 10:59:32 -0400

It’s not too early to start thinking about Christmas!

Missionaries embrace social media « Wycliffe Bible Translators USA

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:12:18 -0400

Missionaries embrace social media « Wycliffe Bible Translators USA:

I still can’t say ‘Twitter’ or ‘Tweet’ and take myself seriously!

Seeing My World Through Different Eyes

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 11:24:40 -0400

I’ve been back in Canada for 2 weeks now and it’s been really interesting to see how my friend, Mwasembe, is taking in the developed world. Mwasembe is a translator from the Mbeya Cluster Project and he’s never been out of Tanzania with the exception of a trip to Nairobi several years ago. He has accompanied me here to help share with our partners how Bible Translation and language development are impacting his community.

Mwasembe boarded his first plane with me on July 21, a Boeing 767 which took us directly to London Heathrow’s brand new terminal 5. I’ll never know what was going through his mind. Watching him taking it all in reminded me of the movie, The Matrix, except I don’t know whether he was being ‘jacked in’ or ‘unplugged’.

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been taking him around Toronto and the surrounding areas. He’s amazed at things that I’ve never paid attention to. Mostly, he comments on the infrastructure here. Roads, bridges, highways, sky-scrapers, houses, water, electricity are among the things that he often mentions. He keeps asking who’s responsible for ‘this’ or ‘that’ and I find myself constantly referring back to our government. I’ve praised the leadership of this nation more in the last two weeks than I have in my whole life and the weird part is, Mwasembe’s questions force me to do it. The obvious thing to say is, “I take this country for granted,” and while we all know we do this, it’s one thing to say it but it’s another thing to really feel it.

I know Canada’s far from perfect but Mwasembe’s perspective on it has really helped me to appreciate it far more than I ever have.

Amazing Weekend at Bethel Park Camp

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 12:17:46 -0400

Over $20,000 raised for WBTC projects supported by PAOC through GPL!

Christianity.ca - One Cool Coordinator

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 07:31:58 -0400

Christianity.ca - One Cool Coordinator :

This truly is cool. Christianity.ca has posted the article from the spring issue of Word Alive Magazine.

The Perfection and the Frustration of God’s Timing

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 11:35:40 -0400

(From the Fosters’ Forum Summer 2009) “If you want something done right, do it yourself!” I loathe that statement but I find myself subscribing to the idea at a level far below my own consciousness. It’s only in hindsight that I recognize it but when I see this tendency within myself it scares me.

I like to think of myself as the go to guy, a mover and a shaker, a person who makes things happen—and then ultimately gets them done. I’m not afraid to grab the bull by the horns and step up to the plate.

Do these idioms sound familiar to you? Do they describe you? If so then consider yourself warned: you walk a very fine line between good and evil; between patience and pride! It’s an attitude that I have a love/hate relationship with in that it seems appealing to be someone who can be counted on but I’m all too aware of the dangers of taking matters into my own hands.

Abraham and Sarah thought they needed to take matters into their own hands and so they called upon Hagar. Moses thought he needed to take matters into his own hands when he decided to kill the Egyptian. The Israelites felt they needed to get the show on the road and built an idol when Moses was too long up on Mt. Sinai. Saul couldn’t wait a single week for Samuel when he decided that he should assume the priestly duties. All of these actions have two things in common: first, they involved people who thought they knew what was best—even more so than God, and secondly, they had devastating consequences that changed the course of people’s lives and history forever. Have you ever wondered how different the religious landscape of the world might look today had Abraham waited for God to fulfill His promise to him and Sarah?!

Despite my intimate knowledge, however, with the dangers of taking matters into my own hands, I find myself constantly having to push against a tide of obstacles in order to do the work that God has called me to do. I’m not aware of many ministry successes that come easily! After all, didn’t God Himself, in the same breath he told Joshua that he would never leave nor forsake him, also tell him to be strong and courageous?! So where is the balance?

After I graduated from Bible college in 1992, I knew exactly that I wanted to serve God in Bible translation work for minority language groups. I had my calling and I had my vision. If my life could be marked by the translation of God’s Word for an entire people group that had never had it before, then my life would have had purpose and great value. I was ready to carry on with further training in linguistics and head out on the mission field. But God had a different plan…

I would work for seven years in pastoral ministry before going back to school and then I would spend another four years in University! I argued with God, I wrestled with God, I yelled at God. As each year passed, the vision felt further and further away. All the while I wondered, “How can God’s delaying of my going to the mission field possibly make sense?” I made several attempts to go overseas on my own and fell flat on my face every time. Looking back now, I am so grateful!

In just a few weeks, Ranette and I and our boys will head to Canada for our second furlough. As I look back over our first five years on the mission field, I’m speechless. Our work in the Mbeya-Iringa Language Cluster Project and now the Mara Language Cluster project has seen translation work begin in 18 languages spoken by well over 4 million people. This far exceeds my vision to translate for just one language community.

Ecclesiastes 7:8 tells us that patience is better than pride. If these are opposites then one means trusting in God while the other means trusting in self. Perhaps the answer to my question about balance lies here!