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Book Trailer. Living in the Shadow of Death: From a Child of War to an A...




It has been 15 months since our first book launch (November 2017)! After being able to share the story with Samuel’s family - reading it to them in the village, as we sat under the stars, outside of our mud hut with grass-thatched roof - we have decided to edit the title and a few small details, and to print it again.

 The book is on Amazon and Kindle - and coming to iBooks and bookstores soon!

 Click here to see our Amazon Author Page

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If my Prayers Drew Blood

I have been looking through an old journal (2007) and have felt convicted to live out more of my past persuasion, and to not become complacent nor stagnant. Here is a note that I wrote about [imagination and] prayer, which I need to re-arrange my life to pursue more: "When one has an imagination like mine, it is often best not to to recall certain things, [like news] spoken second-hand. Yet, some thoughts and especially prayers must be suffered through. I wonder what thoughts, what painful knowledge was so burdened on Jesus that while praying, He was caused to bleed. AT TIMES I CHOOSE TO EVEN REFRAIN FROM PRAYING, ONLY TO SAVE MYSELF SOME REALLY INSIGNIFICANT PAIN, AND AT WHAT COST? If my prayers were so fervent that they actually drew blood then perhaps they would be more effective! "
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Intentionality

As I finish up this school year with my littles, (and prepare to continue their lessons throughout the Summer, so that we are ready to begin the school year well), I am reflecting on this past school year, and the many travels and lessons that we have had together.  We began the school year in El Salvador, finished our first term in Canada, completed our second term in Uganda, began our third term in Canada, and are finishing up back in El Salvador. We have learnt and grown in each subject and grade, and as a family, and individually. I especially enjoy the lessons learnt through experience, as we travel, and as we live in different cultures and contexts – but, as much as I love teachable moments, and life lessons, and I love teaching God’s Word and the practical lessons of growing in character, I am otherwise, not a very good teacher, and very easily fall behind –especially in recording our learning (which is required for being Distributed Learner’s through my home province)....
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Reflecting on Child Soldiers and IDPs in Soroti, 2004: Journal Entry and Poem

Child  Soldier (Reflecting again on meeting child soldiers in Soroti, Uganda in 2004)  Although I didn't know it at the time, I met my husband - and even interviewed him- in Soroti Town in 2004. That visit will forever be etched on my memory. We have just published the second edition to Samuel's story now. Having freshly re-read and edited every page, I have again re-lived his story as if it is my own (which is probably why I have been feeling so exhausted lately!). Imagining life as an Internally Displaced Person (IDP), living on a battlefield and surviving in the jungles, is one thing; remembering the child soldiers and child wives that we met is another. The picture on the right, and the one below, are of IDPs in Soroti. They have beautiful smiles, and while they were completely displaced and spread out throughout the city, seeking safety from Kony's army that rampaged villages in the district, they were still "innocent". The children that we me...
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reflections on airports and travel (written in 2003)

Departures Written by Charity Pilkey, April 2003  To every photograph, there exits the negative from which the subject was derived. And here stand many subjects. Some would think themselves the photographer, or more defined as the photojournalist. Others, of course, are the born model. While some still, would rather not be depicted as either. But all are indeed, to me and my purpose, if not in reality  the subject. The subjects in a photograph taken here, before each one’s destination, and yet also, after their arrival. Each one has a negative; a strip like that of a comic, but more properly described as a slide-show. And whether their departure is but for a little while or if it is expected to be for an eternity, there will exist forever in their mind’s eye, this place of departure and the happenings that brought them here. This place where everyone holds ready their passport, will be stamp now in each one’s  life passport . A stamp which cannot be erased....
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God’s Sufficient Grace - and my “stroke-like symptoms”

Here is a little update on my health... All of the neurology and rheumatology appointments went well and there was no pathological reason for a stroke, my brain and heart are all normal -praise God! A hair analysis did show heavy metals, and the neurologist said the symptoms were all “migraine-related” (did you know you can have a migraine without a headache?) The advice is to do a heavy-metal detox, take supplements like magnesium and Ubiquinol (among others), to have massage therapy, do stretches, and to rest more. My  diagnosis was also changed from Lupus to Fibromyalgia -which have similar symptoms, but which means that there is no risk to organ damage or deterioration (I also have a congenital back problem which adds to the pain and stress on my body). If you missed why I was seeing a Nuerologist in the first place, here is what I wrote in July: I had a mini stroke or TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack), on Saturday June 22nd. Below is what I wrote on facebook:...
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Rats - living and even sleeping with rats - a lesson in being thankful!

Rats are one of the most resilient rodents on this globe. They take care of their orphaned young, and they survive on whatever they can find, and in whatever nests they can make – all over the globe. Both of my sisters had had experiences with rats (in Canada and in Uganda), and while I had seen the odd rat at a distance, I had never had to deal with living with them –let-alone sleeping with them! At home in the village there is a small variety of rat (from my limited knowledge of rodents, I would have called them mice). There are several problems with having rats around, but aside from their stealing food, and possibly spreading disease, if not just urinating on personal belongings (such as children’s car seats being stored in a hut!), they attract snakes. So, when we had a tribe of rats, numbering in the hundreds, living close to our hut, and after having one of them drown in our drinking water (inside our hut – such a horrible sound to wake up to!), we destroyed their ma...
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Do we have something radically different to offer the world this weekend?

“ Are we using our freedom to make this Good News plain? Or are we so separatistic that we have no connection with unbelievers ; or are we so worldly they don't know we have anything radically different to offer?" (Quote from Desiring God/John Piper) (An attempt to look biblically at culture and the Gospel, in relation to Resurrection Sunday) Today (Good Friday), we remember the death of our Lord, Sunday we celebrate His resurrection, and daily we await His return. All of history is pivoted on Christ’s death and resurrection. Beginning in Genesis: Creation, the Fall and the first Messianic prophesy, throughout the old testament and both Israel’s and all of mankind’s history, leading up to what we have recorded in the Gospels. And now, as we await Him returning in Judgement, we proclaim that Gospel to a lost world…and we teach our children how to know, love, and live in relationship with Jesus–Messiah. May God help us as we seek to share the Gospel, and as we tea...
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Is it dangerous to be a missionary in El Salvador? Our experience and a little history lesson

I noticed that this blog had been looked at a lot lately, and hadn’t realized that when I last changed my blog layout, it had affected the style and flow of this post. I think I have fixed it now...though this could be edited a lot more!  This is not exhaustive on the topics of travel, safety, gang violence, or missions in El Salvador, but is part of our story, and some of the history of the country that we serve in. El Salvador was voted as one of the top ten countries to visit, by Lonely Planet in 2010 and 2016. Is El Salvador safe for tourists? My short answer is, " Yes . It is (relatively) safe". It is generally safer than being a tourist in Mexico, and people travel there all the time . Tourists are (generally) not a target. As is the case even in LA, or even downtown Vancouver, there are certain places where you should not go, especially at night, but there are lots of places where you can explore, hike, walk, shop, eat, surf, zip-line, etc. and...
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More of life in the village - began writing in the village, and will slowly finish this week

As I sit here to write, I am surrounded by small children –some nephews, a little orphaned girl, and a great-nephew, plus some of my own children coming and going. I came to the church building to write, because the internet reception is better, the heat is not as intense, and I thought I would be alone – if I could speak the language I might ask them to leave for a little while, but I think that choosing love, and bearing the noise of all the “emotokars” (cars made of pieces of wood –that don’t resemble cars, but with an imagination and some good sound effects, they become perfect cars!)…in the time that it took to write that, they realized that I wasn’t looking at pictures or doing anything interesting, so they took their cars outside –but left a baby behind to play on the dirt floor. Actually, the floor is not dirt, it is made of cow dung. Here is Benjamin’s description of the [making of the] cow-dung floor: “I watched one of my cousins make a cow-poop-floor. First, they coll...
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Life in the village, as a parable that points to Christ and to eternity

I have stepped out of the village for one week, and am spending time with my sister and her family in Kampala (with my 4 littles). Samuel is still in the village and working hard to finish a permanent brick house for our extended family there. We began this house 9 years ago, and it has been very slowly taking shape. Unfortunately, not much can be accomplished with any quality, without Samuel overseeing (even now, if he leaves a “professional” builder to work on one portion of the house, while he is on the other side, he can come back and find that no level has been used, and the work needs to be redone).   As I wrotelast time , I could die to certain life comforts, and would gladly count them a loss for Christ, but still struggle with being a foreigner with the language. We haven’t been called to live and minister long term in an African village (at this point in our lives). So, I am enjoying a visit with my sister before spending the next few weeks in the village and the...
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